The Secret Side
by Mama Skree
Summary: A rookie Starfleet Intelligence operative aboard DS9 finds herself in a situation where she is assigned to solve her own attempted murder - which leads her to be faced with a career-changing decision. *Every chapter updated with new content!*
1. Prologue

Her mother never wanted her to join Starfleet in the first place. "The galaxy is no place for a telepath." she had said. "You belong here with me."

Regardless, the day she turned 18, Kymberli Rzepka enrolled in Starfleet Academy. Three weeks later, she excitedly said goodbye to her mother in a docking station and was gone. She was a spirited individual and Starfleet was happy to have her. Not many Betazoids joined the fleet.

Through her time at the academy, she was nearly expelled several times for fighting, excessive mischief, drunkenness, or unprofessionalism. Her grades were near the top of her class, but her conduct was never the Starfleet standard. She was on her last warning with the Academy when she met Ro Laren.

Cadet Ro helped her straighten up. Ro was an upperclassman while Kym was just a second-year. They became fast friends and through Ro's disciplined demeanor, Kym learned how to calm down a bit and concentrate on her professionalism.

After Ro graduated, Kym rose to the top of her class in academics and became Cadet of The Year in her final term. She graduated with high honors in the fields of Molecular Engineering and Military Studies.

Immediately out of the Academy, she was stationed aboard the USS Titan, where she served as an engineering crewman ensign. She was promoted that same year to Lieutenant second class and began studying interstellar relations as post-graduate work. Without much of a plan for her life, she just followed what was fun for her.

Her mother got over the Starfleet enlistment drama and was quite proud of her daughter. As part of her mother's terms of acceptance, she made one request of Kym: marry a Betazoid man. One preferably not in Starfleet.

Kym didn't pay much attention to her mother's request. She was too busy to be married.

After the Titan underwent a major demobilization, Kym received orders to transfer to the Excelsior to work on the newly developed transwarp drive. She spent four years there working as a molecular engineer until the ship was decommissioned for rebuild.

With six years in the fleet under her belt, she received the most disturbing orders in her career - engineering and military compliment aboard the Space Station Deep Space Nine. Along with the new orders came a promotion - Lieutenant Commander. She was to assist the crew assimilate the Cardassian technology to fit with new Federation Technology aboard the station. Along with the refit, she was assigned to assist the military analyst aboard the station, a Klingon. By the time she had received her post-graduate degree in Interstellar Relations, she was ready to deploy. She knew exactly what lie ahead in the Gamma Quadrant - and she didn't like it one bit.

The original orders were for 18 months until the Excelsior was to be re-commissioned. Thinking she would only have to be aboard for 18 months, she accepted the assignment and arrived aboard the station on her 28th birthday. With the Dominion War on the horizon, she spent most of her time in meetings and researching and very few hours actually working on the station's systems. She served as Chief Engineer aboard the Defiant when Chief Miles O'Brien was not available. They shared the responsibility equally and Kym enjoyed being out in space again.

The Dominion war officially started six months after she arrived aboard DS9. She had her work cut out for her as an analyst, but also faithfully worked as second in command engineer. She was quite busy.

During this time she made close friends with Major Kira Nerys and Commander Worf, who was her mentor in the area of military operations. She went to battle many times aboard the Defiant with a crew that she became very close to.

Kym's mother fell gravely ill the following year and she was on shore leave to Betazed when the station was captured by the Dominion. She fell under strict orders to remain on duty at the Betazoid embassy, but received a message from Major Kira telling about a plot to re-take the station. She knew she had to get back to the station to help. She disguised herself as a Bajoran mercenary and smuggled herself onto a transport back to DS9.

During a station sabotage mission led by Major Kira and Rom, she participated by guarding an anterior entrance to the relay station in which Rom was working to disarm the weapons systems. When she received the notification that the station had been disarmed, she began to make her way out of the crawlspace. Before she had a chance to escape, however, the station rocked with phaser fire, causing part of the crawlspace and bulkhead to collapse on her. The collapse caused a broken pelvis, two broken ribs and a punctured lung.

A second jolt to the station caused the floor under her to give way, causing her to fall over 25 feet to the chamber below. One of her lumbar vertebrae was broken by the fall, severing her spinal cord.

She lay in the chamber for over four hours before anyone found her. She was rescued out of the chamber by Commander Worf and Odo, who detected her presence during a security sweep of the station. Dr. Julian Bashir helped extract her from the rubble. Amid the seriousness of her injuries, she was happy to see her colleagues again.

Two surgeries later and despite Dr. Bashir's best efforts, Kym was paralyzed from the waist down. Normal therapies like genotronic replication were not viable options due to the complexity of her neurons and her brain. She attended her Starfleet Court Marshall hearing and her friend Jadzia Dax's wedding in a wheelchair. Due to extenuating circumstances and the war situation, she was placed on a year's probation with all charges of insubordination dropped if she stayed out of trouble for her tenure on Deep Space Nine. She gave up her engineering duties and focused solely on military analysis. She celebrated her one-year anniversary of arriving on the station by enduring a third surgery to realign her pelvis.

Several months later, Dr. Bashir had convinced Kym to try neural transducer therapy with a spinal fusion. She agreed in order to avoid a medical discharge from the fleet. Dr. Bashir implanted seventeen transducers through her spine and legs, allowing her brain to receive electrical impulses through a fusion core at the site of her spinal injury. The procedure allowed her to walk again, but only limited intervals and with incredible pain. With extensive physical therapy, she was able to regain 80% of her mobility with pain management.

After the war ended, she became acting Chief Engineer until orders were completed for Nog to take the responsibility. After a year in physical therapy, Dr. Bashir came across new research involving Betazoid stem cell transplantation and prototype DNA. He was able to clone new spinal cord tissue from her mother's DNA and inject the cells into the damaged part of her spinal cord, forming new connections. Three weeks later, she learned to walk again on her own.

Following her transplant, Kym was healthy enough to be recruited into Starfleet Intelligence and was promoted to Commander second class. She was able to pass their training program with flying colors and agreed to becoming an operative with one condition - that she would be able to return to Deep Space Nine.

She will be in physical therapy for at least another year while her body continues to build new neurons in her spinal cord. It's been nine months since the transplant. She has nerve pain in her legs as a result from her injury, however, the pain should subside within the first two years following the transplant. Within five years, she will have regained total mobility and be pain-free.

As an Intelligence Operative, her mission is to obtain covert intelligence about external humanoid species and internal Federation species. She is also responsible to obtain covert intelligence about internal Starfleet Officers, reporting back to the Federation any instance when she finds inconsistencies or discrepancies.


	2. Chapter 1

"Admiral," a young lieutenant's voice boomed through the expanse of Admiral Amanda Addison's brightly lit office. The skyline of Paris loomed through the windows behind her, the silhouette of the Eiffel Tower barely visible. Her fifteenth floor office was surrounded be full length windows on the far wall, providing the most amount of light possible. Addison hated the darkness.

"Yes, Lieutenant?" the Admiral looked up from the padd she held steady in her left hand. Her coffee cup steamed beside her right hand, the glass desktop providing the platform for it all.

"More intelligence, sir. Our Romulan counterpart has three new targets, sir. The next one is Rzepka aboard Deep Space Nine, after that he is targeting - " the lieutenant started.

"Rzepka? She wasn't on my original list." Addison said quickly. "Intercept and be sure he doesn't target her. I need her for other matters."

The Lieutenant frantically reviewed the information on the padd in his hand.

"Sir, it's too late to send a message to our spy. By the time he receives the message, the target will have been eliminated."

"What?!" Addison felt herself getting frustrated with this operation. Section 31 had grown too large and it's infrastructure was becoming too involved with Starfleet Intelligence and was losing it's secrecy. Some of the newest operatives were sharing secrets. The best way to stop the breech, in Addison's mind, was to eliminate the source of the problem.

"How long until the attack on Rzepka's life?" Addison said, trying to calm down. Her curly blonde hair glistened in the setting sun.

"Three days, sir."

"What is the elimination plan?" Addison said with a sigh and holding out her hand for the padd. The lieutenant handed it over to her. "Tryscopotherol. Clever. "

"Sir?" The lieutenant plastered a confused look on his face.

"Tryscopotherol poisoning will mimic a malfunction in the Commander's stem cells. Bashir will probably catch it though. Not a very tactical murder weapon, at least, not for our Tal Shiar friend." Addison put the padd down on her desk and rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"Can't we just warn Rzepka?"

"No. I haven't recruited her yet. She has no idea what is going on. Send a fleet of 30 operatives from Targus Prime with the antidote. With any luck, Bashir will do the rest. He's a good doctor. Not much more we can do than that. If she dies, she dies. It will be a tragedy, but unavoidable. We can't risk exposure at this juncture. DS9 is expecting a transport tomorrow. Get the operatives on that transport. I'll send transfer orders for them." Addison spun her chair to face the window.

"Aye sir. I will head the mission myself." the Lieutenant said. He felt partially responsible for not approving the pre-attack orders when he received them a few weeks ago. This little mishap could have been avoided.

"Dismissed." Addison said to the window. After the Lieutenant turned to leave, she let out an exasperated sigh. She hated killing good officers, but the last commander of Section 31 had been sloppy. He had enlisted too many operatives without properly testing them first. Now that those operatives had knowledge of several key pieces of information, the only way to eliminate an exposure threat to non-Federation civilizations was either to wipe their memories or kill them.

Wiping memories, in this case, was just too messy.

Each of the operatives on the list were working closely with intelligence relating to the Typhon Pact. They each knew of tactical maneuvers Section 31 was planning to protect the Federation from attacks from the Typhon Pact. However, the operatives on the list were not trustworthy enough to protect those secrets. They posed a great risk to the Federation.

Except Rzepka. Addison wracked her brain to figure out how Rzepka got onto the list. Rzepka wasn't even involved with the Typhon Pact reconnaissance mission. However, if she survived the attack on her life, Addison knew that she could play a key role in the resolution cover.

_"If Sloan were here,"_ she thought to herself. _"He would have taken care of this a long time ago."_

* * *

_Personal log, Commander Kymberli Rzepka, Stardate 54981.5_

_While I'm excited for the prospect of... something... to happen soon, I'm marred by the mundane and boring environment aboard DS9. In order to break up some_ _of the ho-hum, I've been offering some time in the engine_ _room, helping Lieutenant Nog get ready for a Starfleet Engineering Inspection and teaching him a few things along the way. He's a good kid. He's going to go places one day. _

_The pain has been manageable. I can feel a noticeable difference now compared to this time last year. It's been nine months since the stem cell transplant, and I'll be honest - I wasn't holding high hopes of it's success. But alas, it worked. And is still working. _

_Perhaps I'm being a bit pessimistic while I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop._

_I've talked to councelors about it. I've talked with Ezri, who offered the best advice over subspace 500 light years away. _

_"Pick up the first shoe. That way, when the other one does drop, you'll have recovered the first one." _

_At first I wasn't sure what she was talking about. It's hard to read someone's feelings and thought through subspace. Over time, I finally realized what she meant. I had practically halted my career when I was injured. It's time to pick it back up and run. _

_Run fast. _

_I think it's time for me to stop floating along and start actively swimming. My new career in Starfleet Intelligence will surely prove to be a promising one and I'm going to make a difference for the Federation. _

_I will. I swear it. As soon as something happens. _

Ops was exceptionally quiet that day. During her entire tenure aboard Deep Space Nine, Commander Kymberli Rzepka couldn't remember a time when Ops was so quiet. Very few officers and personnel were on duty when a call came through the station's secure channel for Science Officer Ensign Thrishar ch'Thange. The ambient light around Ops lent an eerie glow on the Cardassian technology surrounding the commander. Tan and gray bulkheads lined the Operations hub of the station, illuminated with indirect light.

Thoughts and emotions of the few individuals fluttered through Kym's consciousness. She was the only Betazoid aboard the station, but she never felt a lack of understanding from her crewmates.

In the Captain's office, Rzepka noticed that Captain Kira Nerys was having a very animated discussion with a Klingon – Chancellor Martok. He was standing tall with his arms folded, entertaining the Colonial. Their discussion seemed casual, but Kira seemed to be fired up about something.

The commander grew increasingly uncomfortable sitting in her straight backed chair, keeping an eye on the communications panel in front of her. The Andorian ensign stood still as he took his call in the private office directly in front of the comm station, slightly to the left. The commander knew that he was talking to someone about a personal nature, but she knew little else. She offered to cover his station while he took the call.

Electricity jolted through Commander Rzepka's hip bones and down into her ankle. She dug her thumb carefully into the inside of her knee, right under the kneecap, as she sat in the straight-backed leather chair, waiting for the young Andorian ensign to return from his call. It was her Saphenous nerve. She knew it. It always bothered her after she'd been too active the day prior. She figuratively slapped herself for working 16 hours straight the day before which left her tired and her nerve on fire.

_How long can a call take, anyway?_ she anxiously thought to herself as she pressed the heel of her hand hard into her right quadriceps and pushed her hand toward her knee, watching the wrinkles of her black uniform follow her hand. Repeating the process, she shifted her weight off her right hip bone and onto the left. She desperately need to stand up and walk around. _Only a few more minutes, I'm sure..._

Rzepka heard the turbolift shaft slide into place and come to a halt on her right, pausing only a second before the doors hissed open. She sensed the doctor's presence as she withdrew her hand from her leg quickly and straightened up, concentrating on the comm panel in front of her. She could see her reflection in the panel's exterior as she watched the lights dance along without a care. Every single thing seemed in order. She felt him approach slowly but didn't look up from the panel.

"Good evening, Dr. Bashir." she said calmly before he came into her line of vision. The electrical pulses in her leg were causing her hamstring to spasm, but she kept still and straight faced. She maintained her composure as she looked up, smiling.

"Good evening, Commander. Your leg okay?" The doctor didn't waste any time noticing the leg trouble. He must have seen her rubbing it feverishly before she sensed his presence. _Caught red handed_, she thought. He leaned his hand on the top of the conn station and shifted his weight into a casual posture.

"Just a cramp. Nothing too serious." The commander flashed a confident smile while her leg lit up like a warp core breech. She stretched out her back and leaned against the tall gray leather chair.

His left eyebrow raised and he turned his chin downward. His dark features were pronounced in the dim light of Ops, his dark hair glistening in the ambient light. He didn't believe her. Kym vowed to herself that she would practice lying at the first free moment.

"What are you doing up here, anyway? I haven't seen you in ops since you were promoted." His small talk was already driving the commander up the wall.t. She straightened, focused on the comm panel for a moment and then looked up again.

"A priority message came through for Ensign ch'Thane on my office channel. I'm just covering while he finishes." In the corner of her left eye, she could see the ensign talking very animatedly to what appeared to be his parents in a closed office. "You know Andorians. Always like to be secure Besides, gives me an excuse to get out of the office."

"She been in there a while?" Bashir said, furrowing his dark eyebrows and motioning his head toward the commander's office. Kym turned her head to see Captain Kira still talking with Chancellor Martok through the glass doors. They were both relatively calm, surprisingly. She nodded her head and a lock of brown silky hair fell into her face. She brushed it aside and behind her ear.

"Only a few minutes. You need to see her? It might be a while," Kym said as she looked down at the comm panel again. Nothing changed in the fifteen minutes she had been sitting there. She just liked to pretend that she was busy.

"It's nothing that can't wait until later," he said, turning back to Kym, his face lighting up. "Oh by the way, Happy Anniversary!"

At first she didn't realize what he was talking about. His happiness was coming from a dark place, but he was genuinely proud of... something. Himself?

Then she remembered. Her leg spasmed again and she remembered. A small scoff escaped her lips and she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She looked at him and let a small smile come across her face.

"Thank you, but I think I'll celebrate anniversaries of happier occasions." She looked down again. Nothing changed. The doctor leaned with his elbow on the panel, feeling philosophical and looking off into the distance.

"Reminds me of an ancient American writer. 'The scar will remain, but it is better for a man to lose both arms than his soul; and these hard years, instead of being lost, may be made the most precious of your lives, if they teach you to rule yourselves.' Louisa May Alcott. You ever hear of her?" He turned to look at her again. The commander just shook her head.

"Ancient Earth Literature is not a strong suit of mine." Kym peered over at the Ensign, who was finishing up his call. If she didn't stand up soon, she was sure her leg would detach itself from her body and run off through the station. Julian stood and looked through the office doors, where Kira and Martok appeared to be finishing as well.

"What are you doing tonight? Get together going on at Quarks later - you should come with us." He said suddenly. Kym hated Quark's. She was tired. And she had a Security briefing anyway.

"I have a meeting this evening. I really can't tonight..." Kym trailed off as she sensed his discontent. _Ezri_. He felt very sad about her absence, and Kym's decline of invite made it even worse. She looked at his frowning face, processing his emotions, which were sometimes a bit scrambled and hard to read. He was silent for a few minutes. Her mouth curled into a bit of a scowl as she thought about how much she missed Ezri, too.

"I miss her too." Kym said warmly. He looked at her in the eyes and smiled again, shaking off the feeling of loneliness. Ensign ch'Thane started to make his way out of the office as Martok exited the commander's Suite. Kym stood instinctively as the Chancellor walked past, nodding as he walked by.

"Hey, how about tomorrow. I'm free all evening. We can drown our sorrows then?" Kym suggested to the doctor, partially knowing that she would likely need a nerve block tonight or tomorrow morning anyway, and wouldn't feel well enough to venture out. It was a cheap shot, she thought, but at least it made him feel a bit better.

"Sounds great. Tomorrow then. And hey, if that leg doesn't ease up in a few hours, I expect to see you in my office." He said, pointing in accusation and smiling before sprinting off to Kira's office. Ensign ch'Thane was standing beside Commander Rzepka at that point, and she moved over to let him sit.

"Did I hear you have an anniversary coming up? I didn't know you were married! Congratulations!" the ensign said as he sat. His personality was very bubbly but political. Andorians were usually very pleasant species and he was no exception.

"Not a wedding anniversary, Ensign. But thank you." Kym started to limp away, feeling his gaze on her back.

"Well, what kind of anniversary then?" He asked. Kym sighed at his persistence, and turned to face him.

"The day I became paralyzed. Three years." She smiled and turned quickly, leaving the very confused ensign to his work.


	3. Chapter 2

The padd in Commander Kym Rzepka's hands was shaking as she scrambled to take notes. Lieutenant Ro Laren was talking so fast that Kym couldn't even process every sentence until she was finished with the next. Kym glanced over at Commander Vaughn, who was calmly sitting with his hands in his lap, not taking a single note. His mind was elsewhere. He would just get the transcription later anyway.

Kym wasn't taking notes on what Ro said. She was note taking on everyone else in the room. For example, Chancellor Martok was worried about the newly developed enemy lines between the Federation and the newly regrouped Romulans, who were once an ally. His intentions were to bring up the subject, but he didn't want the mixed company to do be involved. Kym already knew that the Romulans were up to something and with the development of the Typhon Pact, Starfleet Intelligence was worried too. Martok's heart was in the right place as far as Kym was concerned.

Two young security ensigns sat together to Kym's left. Both human. They hung on Ro's every word, but also not taking notes. As she scribbled about them, Kym shamefully couldn't remember either of their names. She made a mental note that she would check the roster for the names of the individuals.

The electricity jolts had calmed down a bit in her leg and she was able to sit through the two hour meeting without too much trouble. As the meeting ended, the ten attendants all filed out except for Chancellor Martok, who approached the commander while holding out his hand for a shake.

"Commander Rzepka, it is favorable to see you. I take it your trip to Qo'noS was enjoyable?" He said with a smile on his face. Kym gripped his hand as hard as he gripped hers, showing no mercy for his overpowered Klingon handshake.

"It was," Kym smiled and nodded, recalling her recent trip to the Klingon homeworld. Starfleet built a new embassy there and she was an honored guest to tour it before it opened. "The weather was absolutely delightful and hospitality even better."

"Excellent!" Martok said "And Captain Dax?" Second time in one day she'd been brought up. She must have been deeply missed that particular day.

"She is doing well. She is living the dream of an explorer - something she's always wanted." Kym was a guest aboard Dax's new assignment, the Aventine, while on the way to Qo'noS.

Still gripping the commander's hand, Martok leaned in closer to Commander Rzepka's face. "We'll make a warrior out of her yet.. Haha!" He then firmly patted Kym's arm, let go of her hand, and walked away. Not many people are regarded by the Chancellor in public, so Kym considered the interaction very honorable. She slowly limped up to Ro, who was still standing at the podium.

"You ok, old lady?" Ro said, nodding at Kym's leg which was starting to spasm again.

"I'm fine. The two ensigns on my left - are they new? I don't recognize their faces." Kym said to Ro, who shuffled through her memory of the seating arrangement. Her face brightened as she remembered.

"Ah! Yes, new recruits. They both graduated a month ago. Twinnings and Romanson. Both deputies." The names were also unfamiliar to Kym from the last duty roster. She could sense that Ro wasn't too sure of herself as she answered the question.

"Did they arrive with the transport yesterday?" Kym asked, knowing that the roster from yesterday wasn't released yet.

"I believe so. I can get that roster for you if you need it." Ro said, catching on to the series of questions.

"No need. It will be out by the end of the day anyway. I will look then. As long as you know them, that's enough assurance for me." Kym smiled. Ro was struggling to keep up with her duties aboard the station since being appointed as Chief of Security several months ago. She was catching on quickly, but with the ever changing security requirements, it was hard for her to keep up.

"Anything from you I need to know about otherwise?" She was looking for intelligence from the meeting. She didn't want to ask directly, but she was implying that Kym had something secretive to tell her. She had no such information.

"Nothing too much - everyone was quiet today. Martok is hiding his worry about the Typhon Pact and for good reason too. He's worried about another war starting before the Federation has a chance to rebuild. It's on the minds of every commander in the fleet, I can tell you with certainty. He knows that I know - he's trying to keep me on his good side for some reason. I have a feeling he's about to ask me for a favor. Or something." Kym honestly didn't know exactly what Martok wanted, but he was a good commander and had nothing but good intentions for the Federation. She wasn't worried.

"Sounds good to me," Ro said as she packed up her things. "Get together at Quarks. You coming?"

"Second invite I've gotten. What's the occasion?" Kym asked. She hadn't thought to ask Julian what the occasion was, hoping that it wasn't someone's birthday she was forgetting.

"No reason, just getting together. Something Kira said about not seeing each other enough lately. We need some time to unwind, including yourself. You've been working a lot this week. Come on." She started to lead the way and Kym knew she was trapped. She sighed, again, and followed Ro without saying a word. Kym had vowed to be more social anyway, but she really hated Quarks. Perhaps she could convince the group to get a table on the upper level away from the noise. She knew that the gathering must have been important if Ro was attending; Ro wasn't one for social outings.

Kym limped behind Ro through the corridor to the turbo lift. Kym's heel stretched to the floor, her toes upward with each step, trying to stretch her quads and hamstrings. If she could just get that muscle to relax, maybe the nerve would calm dow -

"You sure you're ok?" Ro noticed that Kym was having a hard time walking. Kym smiled and nodded at her, attempting again to cover the pain that she was having.

"I'm having nerve pain today. It's rather stubborn, but not serious. Uncomfortable, but that's about it."

"I didn't mean to pressure you to come out. If you need to rest, then don't push yourself on my account." Ro felt guilty because the Commander was uncomfortable, which she thought was rather silly. Kym laughed in spite of Ro's concern, which didn't show much through her hard exterior.

"No no! Don't be silly! Like I said, yours was the second invite I've gotten, so I really should come out and unwind a bit. Besides, it's nothing a synthale can't help." Kym winked and smiled again. Ro grinned and entered the turbo lift.

Kym could feel that Ro also felt guilty about her own injury a few months ago. Ro was still in physical therapy for a fractured spine she had sustained from an attack. She was very lucky - she will likely have no ill side effects from her injury, which was similar to Kym's. Hers would have left her paralyzed if the injury was only a few millimeters lower. She was feeling guilty because a few years ago, Kym wasn't so lucky.

Kym put her hand on Ro's shoulder.

"Ro. We've known each other for years. Come on." Kym stared at her hard in the eyes. Ro tried to stare back into Kym's eyes before blinking and turning away. She knew exactly what Kym was talking about.

"It's like survivors guilt, you know? What happened to me was horrible, but when I see you and all of the obstacles you've overcome, I feel like I shouldn't complain when it's time for physical therapy or monthly neurologist appointments. I should feel lucky, but I don't. Not at all." She said. "And I hate that you know all of that already." Kym withdrew her hand from Ro's shoulder as she felt the tension in Ro's mind ease up.

Ro was half joking when the last statement slipped out, but she knew that Kym understood.

"I know, Ro. I know. And it's ok. You can't help what you feel. Just know that I'm not anything but thrilled that you're okay. That both of you are okay." Kym never dropped her gaze from Ro's eye, even though Ro wasn't looking at Kym, but straight ahead at the door. It was about to open.

Ro turned to Kym and smiled, Kym smiled back.

"And your secret is safe with me." Kym assured her as the doors opened to the Promenade.

Kym couldn't help but think that their similar situations were starting to bring them closer together. Since practically growing up with Lieutenant Ro for several years when Kym was at the Academy, she'd never known Ro to be a very emotional woman. At least, not very openly. Over the past few weeks, she'd been more open with Kym and more observant of how others are feeling. She was starting to really fall into the role of a leader and Kym knew she would be an excellent commander one day soon.

The women walked side by side for the few yards from the turbo lift to the entrance to Quarks. Kym straightened her back and walked gracefully, amid the rush of electrical pain up through her hip and through her spine, into the base of her skull. She knew a nerve block was in her immediate future. She hated those things.

That is, if the synthale didn't work.

They entered the double doors to the bar and Kym was hit with a wave of voices and emotions. Hundreds of patrons were at the bar drinking, eating, playing Dabo, playing darts, and making a lot of noise. Kym suppressed most of the background noise, focusing only on those that were very close to her. Kym and Ro stood in the doorway and looked around for the group of officers. Kym spotted them on the upper level and patted Ro on the shoulder while pointing. They both pushed our their through the crowd to the stairs. Kym continued to suppress all of the voices and emotions and activity out of my brain, quickly becoming overwhelmed with all of the action. The place was packed, but at least the upper level was quieter.

The stairs nearly killed Kym. Ro slowed down a bit and acted like they were talking so no one would notice that kym was slow. She was doing a good job of helping Kym's cover. Clever.

At the top, Kira saw Kym and Ro first and waved. They both smiled and waved back. They winded through several tables before arriving at a large round table which seated Kira, Bashir, Nog and Sam Bowers, a fairly new crewman. Kym gingerly took a seat next to Kira, Ro sat next to Bowers.

"Well, I think the station is going to start spinning backwards! I can't believe both of you are here!" Kira exclaimed. Ro and Kym must have been the holy grail of social that day, because everyone was equally surprised that they were there. Kym grinned at Bashir, then at Kira.

"My fault entirely, then. She forced me to come." She nodded her head to Ro, who burst out laughing. She was remembering their earlier conversation. Another burst of electricity through Kym's hip and she was already shifting her weight, wishing a waiter would come by to get their drink orders.

"Good meeting, then?" Kira asked Ro, taking a sip of her spring wine. Ro leaned back in her chair and nodded.

"As well as expected. Nothing changed from last week." As Ro started telling Kira about a few issues she had with the meeting agenda, Kym sensed that Julian had an epiphany - he didn't know she had an intelligence meeting today - all she said was a meeting. He felt silly for misinterpreting the message Kym gave him, but she certainly couldn't tell him it was a classified intelligence meeting in front of the entire Ops.

He had been wondering why Kym hadn't taken any pain medication today. Kym couldn't risk her telepathy to be compromised in the meeting.

Julian knew that any type of pain medication will sometimes cause a disrupt in a Betazoid's telepathy, which is imperative to Kym's inside intelligence operation here on the station. Since her reassignment to Starfleet intelligence a few months ago, Kym had been relying more and more on her telepathy to collect data from attendees at meetings, conferences, and operations.

During Bashir's thought process, the waiter finally arrived.

"Spring wine." Ro told him. The Ferengi looked at Kym quizzically, while she quickly considered her options.

"Tarkaleian Tea, please." she could feel Julian's satisfaction. Alcohol would only make the leg feel worse - Kym knew it and Julian knew it.

"Early morning tomorrow, Commander?" Nog asked, noticing that Kym was the only one at the table who hadn't ordered alcohol.

"No, just needing a good night's sleep tonight. By the way, how is the new core infuser going? I saw you guys looking pretty busy yesterday." Kym said, trying to change the subject. She could feel the worry growing in Julian's mind. He had noticed that Kym was hurting earlier in the day and now he was downright worried. Just like him, too. Kym tried to ignore it.

"Oh, it's a complete pain. We've tried realigning the couplers for three days and they are still not matching up. I'm thinking we're going to have to replace the entire infuser if we can't get it aligned. I'm not sure what to do." Nog was recently promoted to chief engineer and had replaced the entire reactor in the past week. Although the station was back to operating function, some of the power systems were still not working because of an incompatibility.

"Did you replicate new coupler rings? Sometimes they can get bend and not fit properly. It shouldn't be too hard." Kym said as her tea arrived. It was in a tall mug, steaming and smelled like roses and oranges. It was her favorite.

Nog's face lit up. "I hadn't thought of that! Where would I get the specs for that kind of a replication?" Their engineering talk was starting to bore the rest of the table so Kym figured she'd end the topic and start another.

"Tell you what. I'll come down in the morning and help you out with it. How about 0700?" Kym said, lifting the mug to her lips but not sipping, just breathing. She leaned back in her chair but sat up quick from the jolt of pain in her hip. Perhaps sitting straight was better.

"Great! Thanks!" Nog was thrilled. The smile on his face was huge. Kym's late morning had just turned into an early one, but she didn't mind. Nog was a great engineer and she really wanted to get back in the engine room. She missed it.

"No problem. You can pay me back by fixing my shower again for me. I can't reach it to fix it myself." Everyone burst into laughter around the table. It was pretty obvious that Nog was at least five inches shorter than Kym.

"Sure thing. I'll bring the ladder." Nog's smile persisted. It was nice to see him happy and jovial. It really had been a hard couple of weeks for everyone, Nog especially.

Chit chatter continued around the table through a few more drinks, another cup of tea, and a few refreshments. She somehow got comfortable enough that her leg wasn't on fire and actually had a good time. When she looked at her chrono and noticed that it was 2200, she decided it was time for bed.

"Well, folks, it's time of us old ladies to head to bed." Kym jokingly said, pushing her chair out from the table. Her hands pushed her up out of the chair until herlegs extended to the floor. Kira and Bashir stood too.

"I think you're probably right. I have a meeting at 0600." Kira lied. She was really just tired. Poor thing, she'd already been working for nearly 18 hours, more than that the day prior.

"You young people have a good night." Julian said and smiled. Kym knew he had an early morning, too.

Kym turned and pushed her chair in. She didn't notice that her left leg wasn't moving much, she just noticed the pain. It was nearly blinding. She tried to take a few steps, but couldn't move. She stood for a moment, holding onto the pillar next to the table, trying to figure out what to do. Kira noticed her discomfort and moved close to the commander, placing a hand under Kym's arm.

"What's wrong?" Kira said, obviously very worried. Kym could feel herself going pale as the blood rushed away from her face in a panic.

"I don't know. I think I just need a minute." Kym said. Julian noticed Kym's discomfort and rushed to help. He held her arm with one hand and placed the other at the small of her back. Kira brushed Kym's long brown hair behind her hear so she could see Kym's face. It was marred in a grimace.

"Your leg?" Julian asked, already scheming in his head what was wrong. Kym nodded, afraid to speak because tears were already forming in her eyes. "Ok, we're going to get you some help. Just take a few deep breaths... Nerys, can you help me get Kym to the infirmary?"

"Of course!" She said, wrapping Kym's arm around her shoulder and putting her other arm around Kym's back. Julian did the same as they headed for the lift.

Kym could only put weight on her left leg and even then barely. She felt rather embarrassed as they made their way slowly out of the bar, Kira quietly encouraging the entire way. Quark looked up from wiping a glass and said something like "You ok, there Commander?" to which Kira shouted back something like "Just another day in paradise, Quark!"

Out in the promenade, Kym felt the searing pain radiate to the base of her skull again which made her breath catch in her throat. Her vision started to blur, but Julian and Kira concentrated on moving. Kym started to panic again, feeling her body become heavier and heavier. Kira kept encouraging as she looked worriedly at Julian. They moved faster toward the infirmary, which was only a few yards away.

"We need some help here!" Julian yelled as the three entered the infirmary. Kym was completely unconscious by then and Kira was also starting to panic. Dr. Simon Tarses ran to their aid, picked up the commander in his arms and ran toward a bio bed in the ICU.

Kira stood frozen as she watched Julian take off after Dr. Tarses, followed by a few nurses. She watched as Julian pulled out his medical tricorder and carefully scanned Kym's body.

"She's going into neuroleptic shock. 10 cc's of synaptizine, 20 cc's of cyclobenzaprine, stat!" Julian yelled as he ran around the bed to turn on the monitors. A nurse attached a neural monitor to Kym's forehead while Dr. Tarses attached cardiac monitors to her shoulders. Monitors whistled and alarmed loudly. The doctors worked on the commander as the nurses delivered the drugs. Julian injected the commander with the drugs after quickly double checking the doses, then watched the monitors carefully.

"Come on…." Julian mumbled under his breath as he waited impatiently for the drugs to take effect on her condition. Kym's body started to convulse as her brain waves continued to diminish and her neural activity continued to be more erratic. Within a few seconds, she started to vomit. The nurses rolled her to her side quickly, one holding a basin, the other reaching for a washcloth.

Julian swore under his breath and grasped for another hypo, unloading it and tossing the cartridge to the floor.

"Promethazine, 10 milligrams!" he screamed, holding out his hand and feeling quite helpless. He had already pumped several drugs into her system and none were taking the intended effect. He was nervous about putting more medication into her system without knowing more about what was causing the problem. He injected Kym with the medication and quickly handed the hypo back to the nurse.

"Did she aspirate?" he asked to the nurse holding the tricorder.

"No, Doctor." she said quickly. Thank god, he thought to himself.

"Signs of bacteria or virus? Fungus? Parasite?" he asked Dr. Tarses quickly while initiating a molecular scan.

"No sign of invaders, sir." Tarses said.

Kira, who was still watching from outside the door, felt her heart start racing and her palms were getting sweaty. She felt as if she was watching her friend die right in front of her. She said a quick prayer as she waited for something to happen. The monitors continued to beep and alarm loudly as her vital signs started diminishing.

"We need to do a sympathetic block. Nurse Bandee, prep a c-spine kit. Tarses, get a resuscitation kit ready and 30 ccs of inaprovaline on standby. And get a sterile field up!" Julian raced to sanitize as Dr. Tarses and the nurse gathered their tools and instruments.

As Julian sanitized, he continued asking questions. "Captain Kira, do you know of any accident or injury the Commander sustained today?" he said loudly. He heard a shaky "no" come from her direction.

"Has she been off the station in the past few days?" he asked again as he raced back to the bedside.

"Not that I know of."

When Dr. Bashir returned, the nurses rolled Kym onto her side, holding her long silky brown hair aside. When Julian returned, Nurse Bandee was waiting for him with a laser needle and a cervical spine infuser.

Julian grasped the needle in his left hand and took a deep breath to calm down. He looked again at the monitors to see any improvement. Nothing. He took another breath.

"Captain, you may want to step outside." Julian said over his shoulder at Kira, anticipating Commander Rzepka to stop breathing at any moment.

"No, I'm staying," she said firmly. Julian didn't argue as he began the procedure. _Hurry, Julian,_ he thought to himself. _She'll be dead in a few minutes..._

He carefully counted the vertebrae until he reached the fifth and sixth intercostal, then carefully but quickly inserted the needle to the back of her spine. He breathed out a small sigh of relief as Kym's cerebrospinal fluid began flowing out of the end of the instrument. He removed the needle from the instrument and attached the infuser to the end of the needle. Nurse Bandee secured the infuser to the back of Kym's neck. Julian reached for the medication.

"Synaptic function is falling!" Tarses practically screamed as he reached for the inaprovaline and a cardiac stimulator.

"Just one more second... Choloroprocaine, 5 cc's. Standby to resuscitate." The nurse quickly programmed the infuser and handed the vial to Julian. He held his breath as he inserted the end into the infuser tube and began pushing the medication into the tube, his eyes on the monitor, praying for his friend to keep breathing. _You can't die now..._ he thought. _We've come so far. Please... you can't do this now._

"Cardiac arrest!" Tarses screamed again as they lowered Kym onto her back. He injected her with the inaprovaline and placed the cardiac stimulator on her chest. Waiting a few moments, he suddenly shouted "clear!"

_Shit, too slow!_ Julian thought as he raised his hands away from Kym's body. The shock to Kym's body made Kira jump. She stood paralyzed, unable to move or cry. Her friend was dying and she was completely helpless. The nurse quickly strapped a breathing mask around Kym's face and turned up the oxygen.

Within a few seconds, Kym's neural activity began returning to normal. Her breathing and heart rate began to stabilize. Her convulsions stopped. Julian let out the breath he was holding, finished pushing the medication and closed the valve on the cervical infuser.

"She's stabilizing." Dr. Tarses said in relief as he opened his tricorder to scan again.

"Take a note, time of c-spine: 2300 hours." Julian said, pleacing his hands on the edge of the bed to steady himself. He turned to look at Kira, who was still standing in the doorway, deep in prayer. Julian turned back to Dr. Tarses. "Keep monitoring her condition. Finish up that molecular scan. Call me if her O2 goes below ninety. I'll be right back."

Julian made his way over to Kira and put a hand on her shoulder. "Nerys," he said. She opened her eyes, which were full of tears. "Let's talk in my office."

Kira's hands were still shaking and her palms were sweaty as she sat in the chair across from Dr. Bashir's desk. Her stomach was in a knot and her legs felt weak. She fought back tears as she strained to hear the nurses talking back in the ICU. Julian sat in the chair next to Kira and sat back, looking at Kira's face, which housed a single tear falling against her left cheekbone.

"Is she going to be ok?" Kira managed to force out before her breath caught in her throat in a sob. She'd already watched many of her friends die over the past few months, she didn't want to lose another. As Kira's strained voice cackled out, they both heard the infirmary doors open, in walking Lt. Ro. She looked around a moment before she noticed Julian and Kira in the office. She walked to the door and leaned into the doorway.

"I don't like the looks of this." Ro said, noticing the solemn looks on their faces.

Julian looked at Ro, then looked at Kira in the eye and tried to be as honest as possible without scaring her.

"Her nervous system is failing. I'm not sure what is causing the problem. I need to run a few more tests to be certain." Julian was already thinking of several reasons why the commander's nervous system was out of order. For right now, his mind was on comforting Kira. "As her power of attorney, I'll need you to sign a permission to treat form and a confidentiality statement as soon as possible." Julian continued. He got up from his chair and walked behind the next, retrieving two pads from one of the drawers. He typed Kym's name on each of them and handed each to Kira, who signed and returned them to his outstretched hand. She didn't say a word, for fear that she would start to cry again.

"Is her mother still her next of kin?" Julian asked quietly. Just the sound of the words "_next of kin_" made Kira's stomach do a flip. Julian didn't want to think about the conversation he was about to have with Kym's mother.

Kira nodded. She wiped her eyes with her sleeve as she stood.

"Nerys, please know that we're doing everything we can." Julian continued.

"I know," she said. "I'm going back to pay the tab. I will be back when I'm finished." She walked out of the office without Julian even saying anything. She left him sitting there alone. Julian took another deep breath and realized that his own hands were trembling, too.

"Anything I can do, Doctor?" Ro said from the doorway. She had her arms folded across her chest in a very nervous posture. Julian stood on shaky knees and tried to get himself together.

"Pray." he said to her. As a man of science, he usually distanced himself from "greater powers," but this time he felt Commander Rzepka needed all the help she could get. Ro nodded at him, turning to walk back out through the doors.

Julian sat quietly at his desk, looking up Kym's emergency file. Her mother and her address were listed there, right where he expected them to be.

"Computer, put a priority one sub space transmission to Mrs. Ama Rzepka, Melorin Province, Betazed."


	4. Chapter 3

Commander Vaughn stood at his station in Ops, looking through the latest incoming and outgoing starship log. It was late - 0100, and Ops was nearly vacant. Two science officers stood in the far left corner of Ops, working on a new star chart of the Gamma Quadrant. He relished in the quiet. Since the end of the war, he couldn't get enough quiet moments on the station. He loved working the midnight shift - it gave him a sense of peace that he never could find aboard any starship or sitting behind a desk.

The turbolift behind him slid to a stop as he heard the doors open. He turned in time to see Captain Kira walk out of the lift and, without a word, directly into her office. He watched her walk to the replicator, only to turn away empty handed. She sat at her desk for a few moments, only to get up and start pacing the room. She stopped in front of the window, leaning her arm against the window. She rested her forehead on her arm to gaze out of the window.

Vaughn turned his head back to the console, but couldn't help looking in the Captain's office doors again. Something's wrong, he thought. Something personal maybe? He wasn't one to pry, but he'd never seen the Captain so upset. He suddenly found himself at the door of the office, pressing the chime.

"Come in!" he heard from the other side. He stepped through the sliding doors, not saying anything. Kira turned to face him.

"Commander, what can I do for you?" Kira said, sitting in her chair, seeming more composed. Vaughn sat down in the chair opposite of the desk.

"I noticed that there seemed to be something on your mind, Captain. It's quiet out there tonight, so I thought we could have a chat. If you want, that is." Vaughn said, sitting back in his chair and crossing his ankle over his knee.

The lump in Kira's throat doubled. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment.

"It's Commander Rzepka." she said slowly and quietly. Vaughn leaned forward in his sead, furrowing his eyebrows.

"What about her?" he pressed. His curiosity was peaking. What had Rzepka done that upset the Captain so much? he wondered. They were close friends... perhaps they had a fight?

"She's..." Kira started, feeling the lump getting bigger and tears stinging her eyes. She got up from her chair and turned back to the window.

"Captain... what is it?" Vaughn's curiosity turned to worry. Something serious had just happened.

"She's in the ICU in the infirmary. Her nervous system is shutting down." Kira squeaked out. _Don't cry in front of him,_ she told herself. _Don't do it._

Vaughn's stomach tightened. He remembered that Kym was looking a little pale at breakfast that morning, but seemed otherwise healthy. "How bad?" he asked.

Kira turned back from the window, having successfully suppressed the tears and putting her command hat back on. "She nearly died in front of me a half hour ago."

Vaughn leaned back in his chair again, hardly believing what he was hearing. His first thought was that it must not be that bad, because Kira was not in the infirmary with Rzepka. His second thought was it was so bad, that Kira physically couldn't be there.

"Any idea why?" he quietly asked. Kira shook her head, turning back to the window.

"Julian will let me know if anything changes." she said. "I just needed to be somewhere else."

Vaughn and Kira bathed in silence for several more moments. Vaughn knew that Kira needed to do something to pass the time. He frantically thought of something they could do together.

"You know," he started. "There are several power couplers that need to be realigned down there in the comm station." he said. "I could use some help on it." Kira turned, smiling.

"I'd be happy to help." she said.

* * *

Julian stood from his desk and turned toward the ICU. He had gotten himself together enough to continue working on the Commander's condition. He entered the suite where Commander Rzepka lay unconscious, monitored by every screen in sight. Her heart rate, brain waves, and respirations had stabilized with the sympathetic nerve block. He knew he would have to continue the spinal infusions for at least another 12 hours while he figured out what was going on.

His first thought was the stem cell transplant that Kym had received over nine months ago. He had devised a procedure that would allow new neurons to grow in the location of where her spinal cord was severed. In addition to the transplant, he engineered a portion of her cerebrum to recognize the foreign nerve cells as her own. Like clockwork, the neurons began forming and firing just as he had planned. She was walking without the aid of a neural transducer in three weeks following the procedure. Two months following the procedure, she was able to pass the physical fitness test to be admitted to the Starfleet Intelligence training program. She was promoted to her newest position within Starfleet Intelligence, aboard DS9, two and a half months ago. Everything seemed to be working perfectly. Until tonight.

Nurse Bandee was still in the suite, filling out reports. "Doctor," Nurse Bandee suddenly spoke, startling Dr. Bashir. "I'm getting an abnormal EEG, sir." She handed him the padd where she took her notes. Dr. Bashir peered at the notes and then back to the live EEG monitor.

"She's experiencing pain. See the Beta waves here? When they dip below the line of measure, that's a pain stimulus. Her EEG is full of them. Neuroleptic shock is very painful. With the block, I'm betting on a headache. Get me 50 milligrams of hydrocortilene and let's see how she does with that." Dr. Bashir explained. The nurse quickly retrieved the medication, programmed the hypospray, and handed it to the doctor for confirmation. He nodded and handed the hypo back to her, which she pressed against Kym's neck. Within fifteen seconds, her EEG started to normalize.

"Nice catch, Miss Bandee. Thank you." Dr. Bashir said. The nurse smiled. "Can you get a gown and a set of sheets? We'll need to get the Commander changed. She'll be spending the night with us evening." The nurse nodded and headed off to fetch the gown and sheets.

Julian drew a vial of blood from the commander and began to run a toxin screen. If the stem cells were malfunctioning, they would be producing high levels of several toxins, which he intended to find. As the tox screen was running, he began scanning her again with his tricorder to see if anything was missed on the initial scan. Upon scanning the leg he noticed her having pain earlier that day, he read an abnormally high level of tryscopotherol, a chemical only found within certain mines on Teras 3. It is a powerful neurotoxin and was used several years ago in a biogenic weapon aimed at the Romulans.

Bashir's breath caught in his throat. His heart started pounding and he felt a bead of sweat break over his brow. No wonder she was having pain. She was poisoned. He reached for the hypospray and programmed it to 40 cc's of dylovene and injected the commander with it. He turned to face the monitor and collected his thoughts.

"Infirmary to Lieutenant Ro." Bashir said into the quiet air.

"_Ro here_." The lieutenant replied.

"Lieutenant, you might want to get down here and see this." Bashir said.

"_I'm on my way._"

* * *

A few hours later, the lights of the infirmary ceiling suddenly appeared as Kym opened her eyes, nearly blinding her they were so bright. She squinted her eyes shut and reopened them.

Her arm was very heavy as she frantically reached up to her face, clawing at the oxygen mask on her face. Her fear was intense as she struggled to understand what was going on.

Julian heard her moving and turned quickly from the monitor on the other side of the room. He rushed to the side of the bed, slowly but firmly taking a hold of her wrist to prevent her from removing the mask.

"Kym, it's okay. You're safe." Julian gently said. Her eyes were wide with terror as she looked around the room. Kym recognized Julian's thoughts before she recognized his voice or face. She knew that if Julian was with her, then she was indeed safe.

"Ah... crnt... bree," her muffled voice squeaked out from behind the mask. Julian carefully lifted the mask away from her nose and mouth to allow her to speak.

"What was that?" he said.

"I... can't... breathe... " she said, breathless and trembling. "Where am I?"

Dr. Tarses heard the conversation and ambled into the ICU in case Julian needed help. Julian looked up from his crouched position.

"I need a full molecular scan. Can you initiate?" Julian said to Tarses, who nodded. Julian looked back at Kym who was still struggling to breathe.

"You're in the infirmary. We're going to help you breathe a bit better, okay?" he said. He placed the mask back over her mouth and nose. "Leave this right here?"

She slowly nodded. Every breath was an effort. The weight on her chest was crushing. Her body ached intensely. She was scared.

As Tarses was conducting the molecular scan, Julian held Kym's hand to comfort her.

"Just a few more minutes," he said to her. "Then we'll know more about what's happening to you." He glanced up at the monitors. Her oxygen exchange level was down to 80 percent and falling on 90 percent oxygen concentration through the mask. "Diaphragmatic Paralysis?" Julian said in a hushed tone, looking up at Tarses.

"Possibly. Cell oxygenation rate is down by half," Tarses said from the console to the far left of the room. His fingers flew over the control panel like wild fie, pulling up a detailed image of Kym's Body.

"Check her phrenic nerve function." Julian quickly said, still gripping Kym's hand. He looked her again in her wide, panicked eyes.

"It's going to be okay." he said quietly. He was desperate to keep her calm in order to keep her oxygen levels from dipping any lower. He didn't need a test or a computer to tell him that he would be intubating his friend within the next few minutes.

"Phrenic nerve is unresponsive. Diaphragm function is failing." Tarses said, looking up at Julian with panic in his eyes. "Bilateral Paralysis."

"Prepare to intubate." Julian said quickly, touching the comm button beside the bed. "Assistance needed in ICU 1." He said into the speaker. He looked down at Kym, who was frantically looking around, confused. Julian lifted the mask away from her face and from around the back of her head while Tarses gathered the intubation instruments.

"Kym, we're going to put a tube in your throat to help you breathe. You're going to be okay. I'm not going to leave you." Julian said, feeling his adrenaline rise again. It had been several years since he had to intubate a patient. He looked deep into her eyes again, gripping her hand one more time. "I'm not going to let anything bad happen to you."

Julian's Medical Assistant Ensign Krissten Richter came into the suite looking surprised. She had just come onto shift and had not read the day's report yet.

"Krissten," Julian said. "I need 20 ccs of meloazine and an intubation kit." Krissten nodded and quickly prepared the drug. Julian looked at Tarses, who wheeled the tray with several instruments on it. The negative pressure oxygenator was standing beside the tray, waiting to breathe relief into Kym's body.

"Do you want me to..." Tarses started,.

"No, no... I've got it." Julian said, moving into position at the head of the bed. Kym's panicked eyes followed him there. Julian took one last look into her eyes before Krissten administered the drug to Kym's neck, Within seconds, Kym's eyes were closed and she quickly fell into respiratory arrest.

Julian gripped the large intubation coupler as Krissten lifted Kym's head, straightening her trachea. Julian gripped the laryngoscope in his right hand and opened Kym's mouth with his other hand. Thirty seconds to airway, he thought to himself. The light on the instrument guided Julian's hand as he carefully navigated around her vocal cords and placed the tube into her trachea. An alarm started to sound, startling him out of his concentration.

"What's that?" Julian snapped, not looking up as he continued to push the tube deeper into Kym's trachea and praying that her heart hadn't stopped.

"Oxygenation down to 70 percent." Krissten said quickly. Tarses readied the equipment to be attached to the tube once Julian had placed it. "65 percent and falling." Krissten said again.

"Almost there..." Julian said as his face wrinkled in concentration. 6 seconds left until he needed to stop and switch to external ventilation. He suddenly felt the scope hesitate and he knew it was in. He pulled the scope from around the tube and out of Kym's mouth, leaving the thin tube behind.

"Pressurize! Oxygenate to one hundred percent!" He said frantically as Tarses quickly stepped in to connect Kym's new airway to the pressurizer. Within seconds, Kym's chest started to rise and fall again with full, deep breaths.

Julian picked up a tricorder with a trembling hand and examined his work. She was exchanging oxygen and both lungs were properly inflating and deflating. He closed the tricorder and took a deep breath, looking up at Krissten. He couldn't believe how nervous he had gotten in the previous ten minutes.

"It's going to be a long shift, Ensign." he said to his assistant, still feeling his hands trembling. He looked down at his unconscious friend as Dr. Tarses secured the ventilation tube clamp to Kym's face and the side of the bio bed. Julian had partially expected the phrenic nerve paralysis, but couldn't risk total respiratory failure by placing the nerve block at C4. He kicked himself for not thinking of a better solution under the circumstances. He even wondered to himself if there _was_ a better solution. He felt like the entire situation was slipping right out of his hands and he felt angry that he couldn't do anything more except try to keep her alive while her body fought the toxin. He hated not having control.

A long shift indeed, he thought to himself, wondering how much longer he could function without sleeping.

* * *

Security investigations teams noisily crawled and clamored through the air vents in Commander Rzepka's quarters as Lieutenant Ro watched. Her arms were folded across her chest, her thoughts lost in the space beyond her body. _Who would do this to one of the crewman? Who would try to kill the Commander?_ Her concern for her colleague – and friend – was growing with each passing minute. She was furious about all of the violence aboard the station in the past few months and this was the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back.

As the security chief pondered on her anger and watched the security team comb for evidence, she heard the doors hiss open behind her. Commander Elias Vaughn stood in the doorway, staring at her with a grim look on his face. His silver hair glistened in the ambient light of Commander Rzepka's quarters.

"Commander." Ro said as Vaughn took a few steps inside. "I'll have to ask you to stay there as to not contaminate the investigation, sir."

Vaughn stopped. Ro turned as Vaughn placed his arms behind his back and stared at the investigators.

"How is the investigation going, Lieutenant?" Vaughn said. "Have we found anything substantial?"

Ro shook her head and consulted the padd in her hand. "Nothing yet, sir. Her quarters seem perfectly undisturbed. The investigation in the replimat revealed the same. We're chasing a rabbit here, sir." Ro tried not to let the frustration spill out of her mouth when she spoke, but was not successful.

"Lieutenant, Starfleet Intelligence is considering this incident an act of terrorism. Leave no stone unturned. Teams around the clock working to find out what happened here, understand? I'm going to speak with the commander now. Anything you would like me to ask her?" Vaughn's hundred year old brow was furrowed in concern. Seemed like everyone else had the same look on their faces, too.

"Just see if you can get the time line again from her. Perhaps there is something she left out. Anything will help at this point." Ro turned back to her padd. "And try to find out from the doctor exactly what the toxin was. I have an idea I want to look into."

Vaughn nodded and turned on his heel. Before he exited through the doors, he turned his head.

"Be sure to leave the Commander's quarters better than you found it. I don't want her having to clean up a mess when she gets home."

Vaughn thought carefully about the situation as he made his way down to the infirmary. Since Commander Rzepka's promotion and acceptance to Starfleet Intelligence, he had been assigned to mentor her in her new role. Having been involved with Starfleet Intelligence for many years himself, he took Rzepka under his protective wing, striving to teach her all of the lessons that he learned the hard way.

He had recently been made aware of randomized attacks on Starfleet Intelligence officers, but had no other information. An officer on the Plantitia Utopia was killed by a sniper a few months ago. Another officer was mysteriously blown out of an airlock of the Gryphon a few weeks prior. Several special operations officers were poisoned on Farius Prime during a raid on an illegal shipbuilding yard.

He desperately hoped that Commander Rzepka was not the latest victim of localized violence. He knew in his gut he was wrong. He was determined to get to the bottom of this string of terrorists. As he walked through the corridors, he glanced at every face he passed and wondered if he was walking past someone with the terrorist group. He couldn't be sure. All he could be sure of was the terrorists have hit close to home, and his patience with internal investigations were growing paper thin.

The infirmary doors hissed open, alerting Julian to lift his head from the console he was studying. He saw Commander Vaughn enter the infirmary to his left.

"Good evening, Commander. What can I do for you?" Julian asked, his voice weary. He did not rise from his chair. From his postion, he had a perfect view of Kym through the door to the ICU.

"I came to speak with Commander Rzepka, if that's alright." Commander Vaughn said. Julian shook his head slowly.

"I'm afraid she's unable to see visitors right now." Julian said, trying to give Vaughn a hint in the nicest way possible.

"This is important, Doctor. I need to speak with her while her memory is still fresh." Vaughn said. He was always the argumentative type. Julian stood out of his chair.

"I'll call you when she can see you, then." Julian said calmly. Vaughn became very irritated.

"Please don't do this, Julian. I need to see her." Vaughn stood his ground. Julian shrugged his shoulders and motioned to the ICU, standing aside. Vaughn nodded and walked through the door, stopping in the doorway.

Kym's pale and fragile body was connecting to a whirring ventilator and seven different monitors. Julian had also started an intravenous line to give her some fluids. She was dressed in a gown and covered with a sheet. A large section of her long brown hair cascaded over the side of the bio bed.

Vaughn took few slow steps toward her and placed his hand over hers. Her small hand was cold under his. He glanced at her face and placed his other hand gently on her hairline, above the neurocortical monitor. He looked at the tube in her mouth, held in place by a silver clamp stretching down each cheek.

"I thought you said she was stable." he said quietly.

Julian walked slowly to the other side of Kym's bed. The ventilator whirred rhythmically, breaking up the quiet air.

"She was. When she regained consciousness, she had some respiratory distress." Julian said. He hadn't seen Vaughn this distraught in a long time.

"Will she be alright?" Vaughn asked, still not looking up from Kym's quiet, pale face.

Julian hesitated. He honestly didn't know if she would survive or not. He always found it difficult to entertain the idea of the unknown with a patients' friends and family. He decided to come right out with it.

"I can't be sure, Commander. I hope so." Julian admitted. "Please know that we're doing everything we can."

Vaughn stood quietly and still for another several minutes. Julian quietly stepped out of the room to allow him some privacy. Vaughn watched Kym's chest rise and fall rhythmically under the blue gown and white sheet. She seemed so delicate. He had no idea what to think. Twelve hours ago, she was perfectly fine. Now she was knocking on death's door. During all of his years, he never did get used to how fast... death... happened.

He shook the idea from his head. She's going to be fine, he told himself.

A few minutes more passed before Vaughn made his way out into the waiting area. Julian looked up from his padd with an expressionless face.

"Thank you, doctor. Please let me know if her condition changes?"

"I will." Julian said, nodding. Vaughn silently walked out of the infirmary.

As he walked down the dark corridors, his mind began to wander. He trusted that Julian was doing all he could, but he still felt angry. His anger built with every step. By the time he reached his quarters, he was downright furious. He stepped inside the doors, let them shut behind them, and stood in the dark.

He wasted no time picking up a flower vase and slinging it against the bulkhead, watching it's contents and exterior shatter into several hundred pieces. The crash was deafening.

_Why her?!_ He kept thinking over and over in her head. _What did she do so wrong?_

Vaughn paced his quarters for several more minutes before pausing in front of the window to peer out at the stars.

I'm supposed to be protecting her. He thought to himself. So much for a job well done.

A single tear fell from his left eye and streamed slowly down his cheek as he continued to stare out the window.


	5. Chapter 4

Admiral Addison's head was spinning as she struggled to concentrate on Captain Tulone's presentation. He was presenting information on the Borg weapons they have been concentrating on with Starfleet counter-weapons. Even though the Borg were still a considerable threat to the Federation, they had been pushed back into the Delta Quadrant. Since Voyager returned to the Alpha Quadrant, the information about the Borg had never been so detailed.

She just couldn't concentrate on it. Her mind was at Deep Space Nine, wondering how the counter-insurgence mission was going. _If Rzepka was dead, Bashir would have called by now,_ she thought. _I would already know. _

Admirals, Fleet Admirals, Captains, and Commanders all filled the conference room she quietly sat in. They all chattered while the speaker took a small break. She briefly debated sneaking out to call her Lieutenant, but quickly decided that would be a slight bit conspicuous.

"Admiral Addison! Tell me, how is your new class doing?" Admiral Janeway approached with a smile on her face. Janeway was newly promoted to Admiral and was well versed in Intelligence matters. Addison plastered a smile on her face.

"They are doing very well. We are very lucky to have very intelligent students this year." Addison said. "The graduates out in the field are just as quick. Very lucky indeed."

Janeway smiled. "Great to hear! And how are you doing?" she said a little gentler. Since Addison's husband's death the year prior, she had slowed down with activities and focused solely on teaching. Admiral Janeway had become Addison's friend during that time and was a great source of support, having endured such loss after her ship, the Voyager, had been lost for over seven years.

"I'm hanging in there. Just teaching and coaching our rookies out in the field. They keep me plenty busy." Addison admitted, rising from her chair and ambling to the replicator across the room. "Coffee, black." she said.

As Addison returned, Janeway giggled, glancing into her own silver mug in her hand.

"I keep telling myself that I need to quit drinking so much coffee. Nothing good can come of four cups a day." Janeway said. Addison smile.

"Except for staying awake." She raised her cup and clinkied it on Janeway's as the speaker of the presentation reentered the conference room. The Admirals took their seats and listened to the rest of the presentation.

* * *

"The Bajoran Public Policy Council will be boarding the station tomorrow morning. I have allocated fifteen security officers to patrol the areas in which they will be conducting their surveys and research, just in case. After what recently happened with Shaakar, I don't want to take any chances. Captain... are you listening?" Ro stopped talking. Kira didn't respond, merely still staring out of the side window of her office, her mind elsewhere.

"Captain?" Ro said again a bit louder.

Kira jumped and turned to the Lieutenant. She pursed her lips and forced a smile.

"I'm sorry, Ro. I'm sorry, go on, please." Kira said, trying to concentrate at the discussion they were having about station security.

Ro sighed. She knew why the Captain was distracted.

"I'm worried about her, too." Ro said quietly, trying hard to sympathasize with the Captain. Kira nodded.

"I wish there was something more I can do." Kira said, turning her gaze back out of the window. "How is the investigation going?"

"We've turned up very few pieces of trace evidence. I've spoken with Starfleet Intelligence, and they are coming up with just as little clues as I am. They are working closely with Internal affairs and trying to come up with something. Until then, we've exhausted all investigation avenues here. The rest is up to SI." Ro said. "This doesn't look very good, I'm afraid."

Kira sighed. She thought about what Julian told her earlier about Kym's condition. 5% chance that she'd pull through, without the antidote. He had no idea of her chances with it.

"What about the transporter signal we picked up?" Kira suggested.

"No source found, sir. We have no idea where the transporter came from." Ro said. Another dead end. Ro knew that several transporter sequences were undetectable by the Cardassian technology aboard the station, but if this one was able to be detected, surely Starfleet would have some way to identify it. Nothing.

"And Starfleet Intelligence hasn't been able to give you anything useful?" Kira said. Ro shook her head.

"I've received the profile of the other murders, but none of them offer any clues to this attack." Ro said.

"Something doesn't add up here. Who did you talk to in SI?" Kira said.

"Admiral Addison," Ro said. "She seemed like she didn't have much information, either."

Kira thought about Commander Vaughn. He had security clearances higher than most Admirals and was on a first name basis with most of them from his years in Starfleet Intelligence. Perhaps he could break through the roadblock that Ro was experiencing.

"I'm going to get Vaughn to deal with SI. He needs something to do to keep his mind of the situation, anyway." Kira suggested. "Maybe he can get something more accomplished with his reputation leading the way."

"I think that's a good idea. Didn't he work with Addison as well?" Ro said. Kira nodded, thinking that Vaughn and Addison had worked together briefly at the Training Installation.

"We're going to get to the bottom of this, Captain. I assure you." Ro said. Kira smiled and nodded.

"I know you will." she said.

* * *

"….your signature... mean to wake you..."

"…...alright...worry about..."

"…..get you anything..."

Kym heard voices. One was Julian's. The other she didn't recognize.

"…..Commander doing..."

"…. for now... close eye on...know more when she wakes..."

_But I am awake! I can hear you!_ Kym practically screamed in her mind. She couldn't move or open her eyes.

_Where am I? _she wondered. She couldn't remember what happened to her. _Am I dreaming?_

"…..sedated... own safety..."

"…..be fine... what she does when she... with her until she wakes up..."

_But I AM awake!_

Kym looked around her and could only see blackness. Flashes of white light appeared in her eyes, while she tried to see anything in the moments of lights, she could see nothing.

_I've got to get out of here._ She tried to speak, but nothing came out of her mouth. Her body was stiff and unable to move at all. _Oh God, am I paralyzed again? Am I... dead?!_

She decided the first step to 'getting out of here' was figuring out where she was. Since she couldn't move, perhaps she could collect other clues. She couldn't see anything. She sensed two people - Julian and another woman. She tried to sniff the air, desperate to recognize something, even if it was a familiar scent. Nothing.

"….was a spontaneous..."

"….did she breathe... own?"

"….did! She took a... breath..."

She sensed excitement from Julian.

_Julian, where are you?!_ She tried to scream but nothing came out of her mouth. Becoming very frustrated, she sighed and tried to think of a new plan.

"…... was again!..."

"….great sign..."

Another sense of excitement, this time from both Julian and the woman. Curious, Kym tried an experiment of her own. She heaved a huge breath, the biggest she could muster under her heavy cloak of paralysis.

"…...again! Yes, Kym..."

_I'm not dead. _She finally concluded. _I'm just... trapped? Asleep? Dreaming? _ She didn't know.

Breathing was difficult, so she decided to try something else. Unfortunately, she couldn't think of a single idea.

The sound of familiar beeping filled her ears. _What is that?_ she thought. _What's making that noise?_

"…..synaptic function... starting to stabilize..."

_What? What are you talking about, Julian? I'm fine. See? _

She took another deep breath, trying to think. She tried to open her eyes to see what was going on out there, but her eyelids were so heavy. She craned her eyeballs to her forehead, trying to force her eyes open. Nothing.

_Don't give up. Vaughn said that to me. Don't you ever give up. _

Using every ounce of energy in her body, she concentrated on her eyelids. _If I can get through all of that torturous physical therapy, surely I can open my on, Kym. OPEN THEM._

The flashes of white became more and more intense as she continued to concentrate her efforts on opening her eyelids. Every few seconds, she stopped to rest, then continued forcing her eyeballs open.

_OPEN THEM!_

Then she saw it. _Blue_.

_Or is that... gray? _

_Either way, keep going! You're doing it! _

"…...her eyes... waking up..."

"…... you hear me?... squeeze my hand... hear me..."

She didn't worry about squeezing anything. Just opening her eyes. Finally, her lids drew open slowly like shades on a window. Her vision was very blurry and she couldn't tell where she was, but she saw Julian's face near hers.

"Good morning." Julian said, squeezing her hand. Kym very slowly turned her head toward him, but stopped when she met resistance from... something. _Am I restrained?_ she thought. Her eyebrows furrowed and she could feel her face getting hot with frustration.

"You're in the infirmary. You have a tube in your throat helping you breathe." Krissten said. Kym turned her head the other way to face a tall, dark-haired woman. Her bangs swept to once side and her shoulder length hair ended in soft curls. Her dark green eyes were framed by ebony eyelashes. Olive skin covered her face and her cheeks were rosy. "Don't be afraid."

Tube. Kym felt the smooth surface of the tube against her tongue. She traced it's concave surface with the tip of her tongue. _This is why I can't talk. _She heard beeping again and turned her head slowly back to Julian. He was carefully studying a tricorder.

"Krissten, let's get another biomec scan." Julian said. He turned to the monitor on his right and buried his face in the information as Krissten disappeared to collect her equipment.

_Oh man_, Kym thought. _I must be really sick. I can't even breathe on my own. What happened to me? Don't be afraid? How can I not be afraid?!_

Kym closed her eyes tight, trying to make sense of what was going on around her. _This can't be real... _Sensing the concern from Julian and the other woman, she started feeling very uneasy and terrified. She felt a tear start sliding down the side of her temple. She couldn't help it. She suddenly felt Julian's thumb on her temple gently wiping it away, then he brushed a lock of hair off her forehead. She opened her eyes.

"I'm here, Kym. You're okay. Are you in pain?" He asked gently. He placed his hand on hers. She shook her head slowly in a drawn out "no." As he turned back to the monitor, Kym grasped his hand as tight as she could, preventing him from leaving. She needed the reassurance that someone was there. She wanted to be sure she wasn't dreaming.

"It's alright. I'm right here." He said. Then he got an idea. "Would you like to see Nerys?"

Nerys! Yes! Kym slowly moved her head in a tiny nod. Her eyes got wide with relief. Yes. Nerys.

Julian tapped his comm badge.

"Bashir to Captain Kira."

_"Kira here." _ Kym heard Kira's surprised voice on the other end of the comm signal. She felt relieved just hearing it.

"Captain, please report to the infirmary." Julian said, noticing Kym's comfort. _She just needs reassurance,_ he thought.

_"On my way."_

Within two minutes, Kym heard Kira's voice frantically saying "Where is she?" to the nurse in the lobby. Kira hurried into the ICU and gasped when she saw Kym looking around. She rushed to the bedside and grasped Kym's hand. Kym slowly turned her head to Kira, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Oh God, I thought something happened," she said as she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Nerys, the Commander is feeling a little confused and she needs some reassurance. Can you stay for a while we run a few more tests?" Julian said.

"Of course," Kira breathed, looking into Kym's eyes. "Kym. I was so worried about you."

Kym's body still felt heavy, but she could feel Kira's hand on hers. She was able to squeeze Kira's hand back. She took another deep breath and relaxed. _I'm not dead. If I were, I wouldn't be able to feel her hand in mine..._

Kira kept talking about random things, but Kym couldn't concentrate on what she said. She felt that Kira's touch alone could keep her in reality. Nearly an hour had passed and Kira had not moved from her position at Kym's bedside.

_I'm_ _not dead..._ was all Kym could think about as her eyelids got heavy again. _Just... very sleepy..._


	6. Chapter 5

Admiral Addison opened the window to her bedroom to let the warm springtime air flow in. Her apartment in Paris was small but cozy. White flowers adorned her dresser, lending a sense of peace in her bedroom. The dark sky was filled with brilliantly shining stars, each one glowing brighter as the city's lights shut down for the evening. She loved the brilliance of a starry sky, more so from the surface of Earth than from a starship's bridge.

Her mind was elsewhere.

Her yellow nightgown brushed the floor as she paced through her apartment, waiting for a message from the lieutenant. He should have checked in an hour ago, according to her chrono. Where was he?

She checked the time again. One hour and thirteen minutes late. She continued to pace the dimply lit living room, which was adorned with a brown leather sofa littered with several padds she had been studying earlier. Beside the sofa stood a dark wooden table, supporting a photo of her and her late husband. They were both dressed in their admirals' uniforms. It was the day of her promotion. Three years seemed so long ago.

_I wish you were here, Herb,_ she thought to herself. _I might not be in this mess if you were._

Amid her thought about her husband and his death, her comm unit rang. She practically fell over herself scrambling for the desk, clicking on the viewfinder.

Her lieutenant's face appeared on the screen.

"Mission accomplished, sir. She lived through the night. Cole checked in a few moments ago._"_

Addison breathed a sigh of relief.

"Excellent work, Lieutenant." she said. "We will speak of your lateness in the morning."

The monitor went dark.

The admiral sat on the edge of her bed, deep in thought. She knew that she wanted to recruit Rzepka, but Rzepka's loyalty had never been tested. Perhaps this was her chance. She knew that Rzepka was eager enough to be an excellent operative, but she needed to get through the testing.

_Perhaps_, Addison thought, _Rzepka can take the role of hero in this. _ After all, the "murder spree" needed to end eventually and needed to look like a act of terrorism. What better way to cover than have one of Starfleet's finest solve the "mystery?"

_Rzepka is just a few orders away from going the distance for her new career,_ Addison thought to herself. _She just needs to survive through the next few days. _

She lay on her bed, drawing the sheets under her chin. Her conscience was heavy, but she knew that her actions were in the best interest of the Federation. Her eyelids felt heavy against her burning eyes as she let them close... slowly...

_Boop, Beep!_

Addison opened her crystal blue eyes. Sunshine furiously streamed through her open bedroom window, causing her to squint. _Morning already? _she thought.

_Boop Beep_! Her comm unit signaled to her that she had a call waiting for her. She got out of bed and smoothed her blonde curly hair. _Who could be calling at this hour?_

She took a cleansing breath and sat down at her desk, clicking on the monitor. An ensign dressed in a black Intelligence uniform appeared on the screen.

_"I'm sorry to disturb you, Admiral, but you have a priority one message from Deep Space Nine. It's Doctor Bashir, sir." _The ensign said. Addison nodded. She had been expecting the call.

"Thank you, Ensign, you can put it through."

The admiral straightened her hair again quickly before Dr. Bashir's face appeared on the screen.

"Doctor, good to see you again." Addison plastered a smile on her face, trying to act surprised by the call.

"Admiral, I didn't mean to wake you. I have a crewman medical report to share with you, sir." Bashir said, his face still concentrated in a frown.

"Judging by the look on your face, I'm guessing it's not a pleasant one." Addison said, sitting back in her chair.

"No, sir. It's Commander Rzepka. She is in critical condition today after having been poisoned yesterday evening, sir." Bashir said.

The admiral let a polished yet fake look of concern overcome her face.

"Oh my. What kind of poisoning?" she said.

"I found a lethal level of tryscopotherol in her system, sir," Bashir said. He decided to withhold the information on Section 31 for the moment, until he was sure their involvement was more than just delivering the antidote.

"Deliberate?" Addison asked, squinting her eyes in pseudo-thought.

"Most definitely, sir." Bashir answered.

Addison looked at the desktop for a moment, suddenly overwhelmed with guilt. _This never should have gotten so out of control. _

"What's your prognosis?" Addison asked, this time with genuine concern.

"Right now, highly guarded. If she continues to improve through the next 12 hours, I would say she has a very good chance at a full recovery." Bashir said.

"And if she doesn't improve?" Addison pressed. She was already contemplating a cover in her head if the commander died.

"If she doesn't turn around soon... then she will be dead by tomorrow. Tryscopotherol poisoning survival rate is close to 5%. I'm hoping we caught it in time." Julian felt his stomach turn into a knot and flip over as the worst possible outcome slithered out of his mouth. "We're doing everything we can, sir. I will keep you informed of any changes."

Addison took another deep breath, trying to shake off the guilt.

"Thank you, Doctor. Please deliver my get well wishes to the Commander."

Bashir smiled.

"I will."

* * *

"Unacceptable!" Lieutenant Ro shouted at the computer. "What do you mean 'no match found?!" Her fist hit the desk with unbridled rage and she was sure she had broken the console. The only small piece of evidence the security team found on Commander Rzepka's uniform was turning up no matches in Starfleet's DNA database. At least, not according to the computer. Ro's frustration escalated against her exhaustion. Commander Vaughn had ordered a 26 hour a day, non-stop investigation to find out who was behind the attempted murder.

_No one sleeps until we have a breakthrough,_ Vaughn had told her. She thought he was speaking figuratively, but he was serious. Very serious.

Consequently, Ro found herself confined to her desk in the security office, staring at consoles and researching for several hours. She had drank enough Raktajino to keep her up for a few more days.

"Lieutenant, you ok over here?" Just as soon as she thought about the commander, he appeared in the doorway. Vaughn had impeccable timing and also had not slept in two days.

"Yes sir. I'm having a bit of trouble running this DNA scan." Ro stammered, trying to calm herself. Her uniform felt hot and she closed her eyes momentarily against her burning eyeballs.

"Let me guess,dead end?" Commander Vaughn approached her desk, leaning on the back of her chair and peering into the output results from her scan. "Hmm. No match found. I suspected so much. Ro, try running a wider scan. Encompass every humanoid species and every Starfleet medical database."

"Aye, sir." Ro calmly said, rubbing an eye. She was growing very tired. She knew that the scan would likely take several hours and was already debating on how she would stay awake during that time.

"Why don't you take a break until it's finished? I'll call you when it's done." Vaughn suggested, recognizing how tired she was. He knew she hadn't stopped working since the commander fell ill. He needed Ro to be sharp and sleeping was necessary for that.

"Thank you, sir." Ro stood, looking at Vaughn in the eyes. "I will only be gone a few hours."

Vaughn nodded as Ro turned and left. He looked at his chrono - it was 0600 hours. Early - or late - depending on who was asking the question.

Vaughn stared at the screen as it processed hundreds of thousands of inquiries. He knew that the search would come up with no match found. His shift ended hours ago yet he continued to work through the night trying to find some clue about Commander Rzepka's attacker.

For someone to break into her quarters to inject her with the toxin, he thought to himself, they must have been shrouded. Or under some kind of mind cover.

Or someone that a Betazoid couldn't detect.

"Computer," he said. "Show me every species that is not telepathically detectable by a Betazoid."

The computer made a chime beep and started to show the list of species that Vaughn was looking for. Two hundred and ninety three.

So much for that idea, he thought to himself as he blindly looked through the list. Most of the species were thousands of light years away. Most weren't Federation citizens. He continued to glance through the list, waiting for another idea to hit him. All of his years in Starfleet Intelligence has not prepared him for searching for such a needle in a haystack. He believed that Section 31 wouldn't attempt a murder on any Starfleet officer, but he knew they were probably after the ones who did. If Section 31 was after the murderer, then the motive must be serious. All of which left him at square one.

He sat back in his gray leather chair in the security office, still staring at the screen, his gray moustache twitching with thought. He brought up the reports from the other murders and started reading, thinking that if he could somehow find out if they were related...

Electrical pain radiated up Kym's spine and her head pounded. She took a deep breath and raised her hand to her forehead. She felt the neural monitor affixed to her head near her hairline and remembered that she was in the infirmary. Dropping her hand to her mouth, she felt the tube and the clamp. She briefly considered pulling it away from her lips, but then remembered it was helping her breathe.

_Better not do that, _she decided.

She opened her eyes and looked around, turning her head as much as the tubing would allow. The room was dark and quiet – the only sound she heard was the soft beeping of the monitors beside her. and occasional whirring of the ventilator machine beside her bed. Her eyelids were heavy as she tried to hold them open against the darkness. Her headache pulsed against the backs of her eyes.

Kym looked around for Kira when she remembered that she left some time ago. She was alone.

_I wonder what happened to me?_ she thought. _My leg. My leg was hurting me. Then, I couldn't walk. Then I... blacked out? Something about that doesn't seem right. Why can't I breathe on my own? _

She wished someone would come explain to her what happened. At least she knew where she was. _Now someone explain why..._

In a complete lapse of memory, she debated pulling out the tube again. _Maybe I can talk if I pull it out... _

She reached up and wrapped her thin fingers around the tube and clamp. She started pulling slowly until she felt a hand around her wrist, pulling her hand away from the tube.

"No, Commander. You can't do that. That has to stay for now."

Kym turned her head slowly to see a petite Bajoran woman, her brown hair swept to the top of her head. On her right ear dangled a pretty silver earring, wrapping from her lower lobe to the top of her ear cartilage. It glistened in the dim light. She was dressed in a purple and gold Bajoran Medical Uniform, her gold overcoat covered her shoulders.

_I know you.._. Kym thought. _What is your name?_

"Commander, are you having pain?" The woman leaned close so Kym could see her through blurred vision. Kym slowly nodded her head _yes_.

The woman turned to the console to the far left. It's glowing green and blue lights confused Kym even more. _What does that say? _ she wondered. _Why can't I see it? _ She squinted her eyes but no avail. Still blurry.

The woman returned and pressed a hypospray against Kym's neck.

"This should help you feel a bit better." the woman said. Kym furrowed her eyebrows as she gazed at the woman. She must have picked up on the confusion in Kym's eyes, because she smiled and placed her hand on her own chest.

"Guirani, remember?"

Kym closed her eyes, letting the smallest of smiles encircle the tube and clamp. She slowly nodded. Opening her eyes back up, she picked up her hand and grabbed Dr. Guirani's arm. She lifted the doctor's hand close to the tube, touching the doctor's pointer finger onto the apparatus.

_Take it out... _Kym thought. _Or tell me why it's there._

The doctor took Kym's hand and lowered it away from the ventilation tube_. _

"I can't take it out. I'm sorry. It's there to help you breathe." Guirani said. She wondered if she could explain to the Commander using visuals. She picked up a padd that had Kym's statistical monitoring data on it. She switched to the ventilator status. It showed that her spontaneous breaths were at 80%.

"See this?" Dr. Guirani held the padd close to Kym's face. "When this number gets to ninety, I can take the tube out. It's not quite there yet." Kym nodded. That made a little bit of sense.

Guirani looked at the padd again. 82%.

"Maybe by this evening we can take it out. Is it bothering you? Painful?"

Kym turned her dead from side to side in a "no" gesture.

Guirani fiddled with the padd again, bringing up the aphasia chart. It had several icons labeled with different saying like "I'm in pain," or "I'm sleepy." Each icon demonstrated the saying with a picture. She held it close to Kym's face.

"Can you tell me if something else is bothering you?" she said. Kym studied the pictures, finally touching one. The padd read the statement out loud.

"I am confused." the computer's monotone voice said.

"Confused." Guraini said. The padd generated several more icons about confusion. Statements like "Where is the bathroom," "Where are my parents/family," and "Who are you?" came up.

Kym studied again. Finally, she found the right icon.

"What happened to me?" the computer's voice announced.

"You don't know what happened?" Guirani asked. Kym slowly shook her head "no."

"Well," Guirani started. "We don't exactly know what happened. Dr. Bashir found a neurotoxin in your system, but we don't really know how it got there. When you went into neuroleptic shock, Dr. Bashir put in a cervical block. That's why you can't move very well," Guriani explained, picking up the end of the C-spine tube and showing it to Kym. "It keeps your nerves from over firing until they heal. When you woke up after that, your phrenic nerve stopped firing. That's the nerve that controls your diaphragm. When the nerve stopped working, so did your diaphragm. That's why you couldn't breathe. Dr. Bashir put the tube in your throat to force air into your lungs and help you breathe." Guriani looked around for anything else that might be confusing to her. She pointed to the vital fluids generator haning above the bed attached to a long tube being infused into Kym's arm. "This is giving you fluids so you don't' get dehydrated."

Kym reached out for the padd again. Guirani handed it to her. At the bottom left corner of the screen, Kym saw what she was looking for. An icon that said "ABC." she tapped it and started spelling.

"S-T-E-M C-E-L-L-S."

Guirani smiled. "The stem cells are fine. They're healthy. Don't worry." she said reassuringly. Kym breathed a sigh of relief. She started spelling on the padd again.

"T-H-A-N-K Y-O-U."

The doctor smiled as she accepted the padd back from Kym.

"You're welcome. Now, you promise to leave the tube alone?" she said. Kym let another smile encircle the clamp and slowly nodded.


	7. Chapter 6

Commander Vaughn sat back in his chair, staring at the screen. Admiral Addison's face was stern looking back at him.

"I assure you, Elias, I have every available officer working this case." she said. "Other than what I have already shared with you, I have no other information." she lied. She hated lying to her old friend, but it was much easier over a sub space call. "How is the Commander, anyway?"

"Your own officer is fighting for her life and you are still holding back vital information! Stop playing games, Amanda," Vaughn felt his temper rising and this time, he didn't fight it. "I know when you're hiding something. You can't lie to me. Not now." He had known Admiral Addison for nearly fifteen years, since she had been working with Starfleet Intelligence. They were commanders together for a few training classes between Vaughn's assignments. He had gotten to know her very well during that time. His security clearance was higher than the Admiral's. He saw no reason why she wouldn't share additional information.

"Elias... I can't." she admitted. "Nothing I have will help Rzepka recover, anyway."

Vaughn leaned in close to the screen, his face twisted in a scowl. "I don't miss this," he growled. "I don't miss the secrecy. I don't miss the lying. And I certainly don't miss the protocol." He drew a breath to calm down and avoid saying something that he knew he would regret. "We are conducting our own investigation. If you can't send me the information, I guarantee, I will find other ways to get it."

Addison sighed too. "I hope you do."

Vaughn hung up on her. He was sick with the ignorance that SI was showing for the situation. Addison was usually not this difficult, so why was she doing this now?

Vaughn stood and exited the Captain's office, stepping out into Ops. The station's command hub buzzed with activity - several ships were docking for different reasons, several were leaving, and the station was going through a major upgrade to several conduits in the Main Computer. As he stood observing the crewmen hustling about, he contemplated going to check on the commander again. No, he thought. I don't want to be a pest.

Instead, he picked up a phase modulator and got to work on an open panel. The relay in the panel still had not been disconnected to received the new upgrade, and he needed to keep his mind off of things. The yellow and red relays lit up his vision. He always thought the lights of the station were much more colorful than those on a starship...

"Commander?" He heard a voice. Kira. He looked up from his work.

"Captain?" he said.

"Do you know anything about this yet?" Kira handed him a padd, which he turned and started reading. It described an unfamiliar energy signature in the direction of the habitat ring nearly two days ago. Nothing more.

"No. What is it?" he said.

"I was hoping you could tell me. It came up during the tactical scan this morning. Our engineering team thinks it could be a transporter beam, but I wanted to ask you. Look at the location..." she said. Vaughn looked a little closer. Habitat Ring, Section H, level 12. That was near Rzepka's quarters.

Vaughn's breath caught in his throat.

"I will look into this right away. Thank you, Captain!" he said. Kira nodded and turned to walk away.

* * *

"…. and if you take matters into your own hands again, our contract is void." Addison said into her viewscreen. Looking back at her was a Romulan with a straight face. He was holding a padd and scoffed."You nearly killed a valued member of my organization. This will NOT happen again, am I understood?" Addison conitnued.

"The operative at Deep Space Nine was on this list from the beginning as a potential threat to the Pact." he said sternly. His secure station aboard the battlecruiserT'Met provided an excellent launchpad for the contract he had drawn with Admiral Addison nearly three months ago. The ship could take him anywhere he needed to get the job done. "I was in the area of Deep Space Nine. So I took care of it myself."

"This is not about the Typhon Pact. It's about the Federation. If you break contract again, I will see to it that you are also eliminated." Addison sternly said. She didn't know where the communication breakdown was. "Stop being so difficult, Matek, or you will be replaced."

"I understand. I apologize for my obtrusiveness." the Romulan said through gritted teeth. He knew the information that Addison was offering on the Federation's slipstream breakthrough was valuable and he would do anything - and kill anyone - to get it. Just a few more operatives and his payment would be on the way.

"If you confirm with me each operative on the list, I will tell you whether I believe they are a threat or not." she said. "And we will go from there."

She spent thirty more minutes confirming the last few victims on the list that she had provided to the Romulan. Each of them had been working for Section 31 and posed the highest threat to the Federation by way of possible secure information leak.

"Just get the rest done quickly. I'm running out of cover stories for my CO. And be clean about it - luckily for you, poisoning is neither clean nor effective. Don't do it again." she said. The Romulan straightened up, thinking about his payment after the last operative was dead.

"Yes, sir. I will have the remaining operatives eliminated within ten days."

Addison shook her head.

"You have seven." she said. "Not a minute more."

* * *

Something very warm across her forehead woke Kym up suddenly. She turned her head to see Kira, who had placed a warm rice compress across her forehead.

"This will help your headache." Kira said softly. "Have you been sleeping well?" Kym nodded slowly, squirming to get more comfortable. The muscles in her back tied themselves in knots and her legs were restless.

She looked around with wide eyes. Her vision was still blurry and she couldn't tell where she was. She looked at Kira's face questionably, furrowing her eyebrows and starting to panic.

"You're safe, Kym. You're in the infirmary, remember?" Kira said, trying to calm her. She put her hand into Kym's, wrapping her fingers around Kym's knuckles. Kym squeezed.

Of course I remember. Of course... Kym thought. She took a deep breath and remembered the tube. She briefly considered pulling it out again, but remembered what Dr. Guirani told her earlier.

But I can breathe now. I'm taking every breath by myself. she thought. Why do I still need this?

In her confusion, Kym looked around more frantically. Someone here must see that I'm breathing now. She tried to sit up, only meeting resistance by Kira's hands. Pain shot up her spine and down her legs, making her feel more frantic. She didn't understand what was going on.

"Kym, it's alright. Calm down. You're safe." Kira said again, but Kym didn't care. She just wanted to be free of the tube.

Dr. Guirani was still speaking with Julian about the day's events when they heard a commotion coming from the ICU. They both entered the suite quickly and upon noticing Kym's agitation, Julian reached for a hypospray, programming it for a painkiller.

"Last dose of toradol?" he quickly asked Dr. Guirani.

"0300, sir."

Julian injected Kym's neck with the painkiller, praying that she would calm down. She took another deep breath and laid her head back down on the reclined bed. Kym reached up her hand and grabbed Julian's arm, drawing his hand up to the tube in the same way she had done with Dr. Guirani.

"What's wrong? Is it bothering you?" Julian asked. Kym nodded. It was bothering her. Julian glanced at the monitor to see her vitals. Oxygenation 98%. Spontaneous breaths: 94%. Everything appeared very good. He smiled at Kym. "Do you want me to take it out?" he asked. Kym nodded frantically. FINALLY! she thought.

"Ok, give me five minutes to finish report and I'll be back to take it out okay?" he said to her, smiling. Kym nodded again, this time reaching out for Kira. Kira took her hand again, gripping it firmly.

"I can't wait to hear your voice!" Kira said excitedly. Kym smiled at her, feeling slightly embarrassed by her confusion. She gripped Kira's hand again, squeezing in excitement.

Soon, Julian returned with Dr. Guirani and a nurse. Guirani carried a tray with several instruments on it.

"Alright, Kym. You ready?" Julian asked. Kym nodded. He looked at Kira. "Would you like to stay?"

"I would, if it's alright." Kira said. Julian nodded.

"Dr. Guirani, hyperoxygenate to 100 percent, please. Nurse, prepare the reintubation kit and post extubation mask." Julian said, raising the head of Kym's bed. "Captain, don't let go of that hand."

Kira smiled at Kym again, feeling her excitement growing. Julian leaned close to Kym to talk to her.

"I'm going to transport the tube out of your throat rather than pulling it. When I say go, take a deep breath, as deep as you can, and hold it. When you hold your breath, I'll initate the transport," he said, already disassembling the equipment from round her mouth, removing the equipment from the tube still" in her throat. "When the tube is gone, your trachea is going to feel like it's closing up, but it's not. It's just a spasm. Keep trying to force the air out. Within a few seconds, the spasm will be over and you'll be able to move air. You will feel discomfort, but we wont let you suffocate. I promise. Do you understand?"

Kym nodded, eager to get it overwith.

"Okay, everyone ready?" Julian said. Two "aye sir" voices came from the room, as he looked back at Kym.

"Ready? Go." he said, his hand on the external clamp that held the tube. Kym started to draw her breath, and when she stopped drawing, Julian pressed the button that transported the tube out of her body and into the tray beside Dr. Guirani.

Kym's eyes grew wide with fear. Her lungs felt like they were collapsing. The spasm nearly crushed her as she opened her mouth but nothing came out. She tried to force the air out of her lungs, but nothing happened. I won't suffocate. she thought. Julian won't let me suffocate. Just keep trying to force the air out. Her body squirmed with discomfort as the room started spinning. She was suddenly sorry that she ever wanted to tube out in the first place.

"Exhale, Kym!" Julian said loudly, reminding her what to do again. She tried to force the air out, but nothing happened. She squinted her eyes shut and tried again. Alarms started to sound behind her head and Julian quickly silenced them as he stood ready with the oxygen mask. "Come on, you can do it!" he said again.

Suddenly, Kym started to cough. Julian quickly held the mask over her face, slipping the band around her head as she sucked in a gulp of air.

"Good, you're doing it... keep breathing... the worst is over now..." he encouraged. Kym could hear her breaths squeezing in and out of her breaths were raspy, but she was breathing. Finally.

She looked over to see if Kira was there, and she was, still holding Kym's hand. Kira was grinning from ear to ear.

"You did it!" she said quietly. Kym nodded, afraid to speak. Her throat was on fire and her breaths were still raspy. She continued to draw deep, cleansing breaths, tasting the air on her tongue. She turned her head to face Julian, who was still putting away unused equipment.

"Julian." she whispered. Her voice was almost unrecognizable, even to herself. It was raspy and hollow, muffled by the oxygen concentrator mask. He didn't hear her. She spoke louder. "Julian." This time he spun around, taking a few steps toward her. He picked up the mask away from her face.

"Yes, Kym?" he said.

"Thank. You." Kym forced out of her lips. She swallowed hard, trying to relieve the dryness in her throat. Julian smiled in satisfaction and gently returned the mask.

"You're more than welcome," he said, still grinning from ear to ear. "Try to relax now."


	8. Chapter 7

"Commander Vaughn," Ro said, looking up from her security station in Ops. "Can you come take a look at this?"

Vaughn stood from his own station in Ops and walked to the Lieutenant's console. His coffee cup hung in his hand like a lifeline - he relished his afternoon cup.

"What is it, Lieutenant?" he said, taking a sip. Ro looked up at him and wondered how he could drink coffee so late in the afternoon.

"Even though I can't trace the origin of the transporter beam near Rzepka's quarters, I can tell you what was transported." she said proudly.

"Well, don't leave me hanging." Vaughn said, looking closely at the screen of algorithms.

"Liquid and a very small amount of solid matter. Not a humanoid by any means." Ro explained. "I can't tell what type of liquid, but it wasn't much. A few CCs at most."

"See if you can get direct coordinates on that transporter beam." Vaughn said. "I need to know for sure if the beam went into her quarters. Any way to know what kind of substance was transported?"

"I'm trying to find that out, sir. The transporter beam was so scrambled, I don't know if we can crack through the distortion. We'll keep trying." she said.

A scrambled transporter beam. Vaughn flipped through information in his head of any species that routinely scrambled their transporters. Klingon. Andorian. Romulan. Federation.

Not much help there, he thought.

"At least we have something to go on. Do you know what the small piece of... something... was?" Vaughn asked, deep in thought. A vial? Some kind of container?

"Silicon. And another substance I can't pinpoint. Almost looks like some kind of computer chip,sir. The mass of the object is less than 2 micrograms. Very very small." Ro concluded. "It might be impossible to find."

"Keep looking, Lieutenant. No stone unturned." Vaughn said, sipping his coffee again. Ro scoffed.

"Aye, sir," she said. "Have you received an update on the Commander today, sir?" she asked almost as an afterthought.

"She's breathing on her own. That's about all I've got, I'm afraid." Vaughn said, thinking about the commander's condition. "Let's just keep hoping for the best."

Ro nodded and turned her head back to the console.

* * *

Her toes itched. Tingled? Numb? She couldn't tell.

White lights and gray walls surrounded her. Kym looked around, unfamiliar with her surroundings. Her lower back ached and she could feel a painful pulse on the backs of her eyes.

Pressure around her mouth and nose forced her to reach up her hand to feel what was there. The mask.

_Breathing. I'm breathing._

Looking around more, she noticed Julian sitting cross legged in a chair at the console to her left, reading quietly. She grinned at his apparent peace. And worry.

"I'm in the infirmary." she announced, forcing her voice out despite its resistance, mostly to show him that she was more coherent than before. The mask muffled her voice and she reached up to draw it down to her chin, squirming her face out. Julian stood and approached her bedside.

"I'm glad to hear you say that." he said gently. Kym could sense his concern perfectly. _I must be off the painkillers_, she thought. _Explains the back and headache._ "How are you feeling?" Julian continued.

Kym thought for a minute. She was feeling... relieved.

"I'm not dead." she announced again. She could already feel the tears welling up in her eyes as she felt his relief, too. She shut her eyes quickly to prevent the tears from building but it was too late. Both eyes released to large tears, each falling at the same speed down her temples.

"No," Julian said, wiping each tear away. "You're not. Thank God. But you did have us on edge there for a while." Kym smiled as Julian continued talking. "Are you having pain?"

Kym breathed a cleansing breath, halting the tears. "My back is sore. Probably from laying around. And I have a headache, here," she said, raising her other hand and placing it above the bridge of her nose. "Feels like I've been whacked with big stick. Actually... it feels like caffeine withdrawal." she said, grinning again.

"You're not due for another dose of toradol for another hour, but I can get something else to help the pain, if you want." Julian said. Kym shook her head. She was enjoying having her telepathy back for a short while. Julian pulled his stool closer to the bed and sat down to talk.

"I spoke to your CO this morning. She sends her get well wishes." he said. "She is very concerned for you." He gave Kym his undivided attention – something he always found difficult due to his heightened ability to multitask while talking.

Kym let a tiny smile cross her face. "She really meant for you to tell me to stop being a pain in her neck." she said. Julian chuckled.

"Don't be silly. You're still a rookie. It's your job to be a... hardship."

Kym scoffed and rolled her eyes. She didn't want to think about her CO or the investigation or work at all. She just wanted to pretend that none of it existed.

"Have you been out of bed yet?" Julian asked. Kym shook her head.

"No." she said, furrowing her eyebrows, "How long have I been here, anyway?" Kym took another deep breath as the nerve pain radiated up to her skull again.

"It's been three days." Julian said quietly, taking the oxygen mask out of Kym's hand and taking it away from her head. Her oxygen was holding at 92 percent at room air, so he wanted to see if it would continue.

"Three days?!" Kym said, her eyes wide. She sensed a feeling of exhaustion from Julian and looked at his face. "Have you been here the whole time?"

"I slept. Once," he admitted. "I told you I wouldn't leave you. I'm a man of my word. Besides, someone had to be sure you didn't pull out all of this equipment." He said, grinning again. Kym remembered trying to pull out the tube and briefly remembered trying to pull out the fluids line.

"Don't make fun. I was just trying to keep you on your toes." Kym said.

"How about we try to get up? I think you'll feel better if you do." he suggested. Kym nodded.

Julian turned to the door, motioning for the nurse to come in.

"We're going to take it slow, okay?" Julian told her as he drew back the sheet. The cool infirmary air brushed against her bare feet. Kym nodded as the nurse came in the room.

"I'll need some help getting Commander Rzepka up to the chair, please." He said to the nurse. He slid his arm under Kym's shoulders, getting a grip around her torso. The nurse helped her slide her legs over the edge of the bed, dangling her feet over the edge. Her legs remained still.

Kym felt the room start to spin and she placed her hands on the edge of the bed.

"You ok?" the nurse asked. Kym nodded again.

"Just a bit dizzy." She said.

"Take a minute to gather yourself. The dizziness should pass." Julian said to her, still holding her shoulders. He was right – in a few seconds, Kym looked up and felt much better.

"I'm okay now. Let's go." She slid to the edge of the bed and placed her toes on the blue and crimson carpeted floor. Nerve pain shot up her legs with the pressure of the floor as she jerked her feet back up.

"You will feel some pain initially, but it will also pass. I can give you something to relieve it, if you'd like." Julian said, noticing her discomfort. She shook her head.

"No, it's alright. I'll be fine. It's not that far." Kym insisted. She placed her feet on the floor again, feeling the electricity again through her legs. She took a deep breath as the nurse and Julian both grasped her arms. She felt her heels touch the floor and another jolt of pain. She wasn't entirely sure that she could make it to the chair or not. No turning back now, she thought to herself. The burning hot sensation on the bottoms of her feet led her to wonder if the floor was really scalding hot lava. She was fully upright and standing now, yet unable to move.

"You can do it. I know it hurts, but you can do it. We're not going to let you fall. Start with your left leg." Julian encouraged. He placed the toe of his boot on the back of her left heel, pressing gently. "This one."

Kym concentrated and focused on her left leg, which suddenly moved forward. Another jolt of pain as she leaned onto Julian for support. He held tightly onto her, ready to catch her if she fell. She kept her head up to keep her balance. She was no stranger to learning how to walk. She'd already done it twice.

"Good!" Julian said triumphantly. "Now the other one. Two more steps and we're there."

Kym focused again and her right leg moved forward, sliding against the carpet. She could feel every pile of the carpet under her burning feet as a tear welled up in her eye. The cardiac monitor started to alarm as she concentrated on her left leg. She ignored the noise as she concentrated on getting to the chair.

Another step and they were almost there. She took another deep breath as a tear fell out of her eye and splashed on the floor. She felt herself being lowered into the chair and she was suddenly sitting. And trembling in pain.

"Nurse, can you get me 30 milligrams of toradol, please?" Julian said as he knelt down next to Kym. "We're going to get you something for the pain now. I can't let you sit here and suffer. I'm sorry."

Kym didn't object. She only sat quietly, taking short, irregular breaths in an attempt to control the burning in her legs and feet. The nurse soon came back and handed the hypospray to Julian. He injected Kym's arm and she could feel a rush of relief come over her body.

"Deep breaths, now. Try to relax. Any better?" The doctor took the medical tricorder from the nurse and he opened it slowly, proceeding to scan Kym's body. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, feeling her telepathy getting cloudy. She reached up and wiped her eye with her fingertips. She nodded.

"Next time we do that, I'm going to need more warning." She said, her voice still shaking. Julian smiled.

"Going back should be easier. It looks like your synaptic activity is returning to normal, neural activity is stabilizing. By tomorrow, you should be feeling much better. . Maybe even enough to walk out of here." Julian said, closing his tricorder and standing up. He knew she was experiencing post-neuroleptic shock syndrome and that by the next day, she should be nearing normal. He turned back to the monitors to take a few notes as he continued to speak. "Have you eaten anything today?"

Kym didn't even feel hungry, even though she hadn't eaten in three days.

"No," she said, feeling well enough to shift her weight back in her chair. "It hasn't been on my list of priorities."

"Plomeek soup?" Julian suggested. Kym nodded.

"Sounds delicious." Julian left to retrieve the soup, leaving Kym alone in her chair. It felt good to sit up. She could see nearly the entire infirmary from here, including the young man who was in the room next to hers. He was sitting on the side of his bed, dressed in his uniform. He appeared to be leaving. He looked up at her and smiled and waved. She waved back, feeling a pang of jealousy._ How dare he be well enough to get out of here when I'm stuck_, she thought to herself. _How dare he.._.

Julian returned with a covered bowl and a spoon on a tray. He also had a small glass of what looked like juice.

"Here you are," he said, placing the tray on her lap. "Not too exciting, but we've got to start somewhere." Plomeek soup was one of Kym's favorites - a mild Vulcan broth.

Julian sat on the stool next to Kym's chair.

"I had an interesting visit yesterday." He said out of the blue. Kym stared at him blankly, waiting for him to continue as she sipped her soup. "Did you have any idea of Section 31's involvement in this whole thing?"

Kym placed the spoon in the bowl, suddenly loosing her appetite. She knew that Julian had been approached by Section 31 in the past, but it was only for assignments that they wanted his help with. He had always helped them, with hopes of infiltrating their secrecy. He had not been successful.

"Not initially, no. I have been made aware of the Intelligence Operative murders recently, however. They all seem to be related somehow. As far as I know, if this was part of the assassination ring, I've been the only survivor." Kym could feel her face getting hot. "Which worries me. Either the assassin got sloppy with me, or I survived for a reason."

Julian looked down at his folded hands. For once, he was glad that Commander Rzepka couldn't sense what he was feeling - fear.

"Kym. Section 31 didn't infect you. They cured you." he said quietly.

"What are you talking about?" Kym said in disbelief. She knew that Section 31 was no threat to the intelligence community, but she didn't put it past them to kill off a few operatives who had spilled a few secrets or knowledge of their existence.

"Did you run into or notice anyone out of the ordinary the morning you fell ill?" Julian asked. Kym thought hard. It was difficult to remember anything that happened that day.

"An ensign. She nearly nocked me over, she was moving so fast. Stopped to apologize, kept on moving. That was it." Kym said.

"When was that?" Julian pressed.

"Before breakfast with Commander Vaughn. Around 0500 that day." Kym said.

"She must have been an agent. Did she bump into your leg, by any chance?" Julian said.

Kym thought. The ensign brushed against her right side, which was the leg that bothered her.

"Yes. She brushed against my leg, but I didn't think anything of it." She looked down at her soup. "Can we please talk about something else?" She added. She was nervous enough about Section 31, she didn't need to think about some other terrorist, too. At least, not while she was trying to enjoy her Plomeek soup.

"Of course. I'm sorry." Julian said quickly. "Don't you have a birthday coming up?" He grinned at Kym as she took another sip of her soup.

"I sure do." She said. "The big 3-2. Although I have to say, I don't feel much like celebrating." She looked up at Julian's face, he seemed tired. "Did you get any sleep today?"

The doctor shook off the change of subject attempt. "I did. Why don't you feel like celebrating? I don't think I can remember a single birthday party that you've had since I've known you." Julian and Kym have known each other for six years, since Kym was assigned to the station as an Engineer, second in command to Chief Miles O'Brien. Not long after her initial assignment, she was reassigned as a military analyst. During the war, she worked closely with Commander Warf as a Dominion analyst. After the war and after her rehab, she was recruited by Starfleet Intelligence, promoted to Commander, and reassigned to Deep Space Nine. She was regarded as one of the top intelligence analysts in her field and worked closely with the Station's Chief Security Officer, Ro Laren, in keeping the peace around the station. She had a colorful Starfleet career behind her already, and she was only 31 - one of the youngest Starfleet Commanders in the sector.

"I've never been much on birthday parties. Betazoids don't really celebrate birthdays." Kym said, leaning her head back on the chair again. The pain medication was making her woozy.

"Really? Why not?" Julian asked.

"We celebrate the birthdays of our children. The day is reserved to celebrate the parents. I would call my mother on my birthday to wish her a happy birthday, but I wouldn't celebrate one until I had my own children. It's more like a celebration of the parent's achievements in raising their children, not really the child being born." Kym thought about her mom and about how much she would like to see her. She hadn't seen her mother since the war, when the Dominion retreated from Betazed.

"Ah, I see." Julian said. "Still, we should get a little something together. I know that Kira has been saying that crew morale is down and a party might be just what they need. A nice occasion."

Perhaps a party was a good idea. Kym thought more about the subject and nodded.

Kym and Julian continued to talk about parties and how to plan one while Kym finished her soup and drank her juice. Julian relished in the conversation - he hadn't had much time to chat with Kym since her promotion kept them on opposite schedules most of the time.

After he helped Commander Rzepka back to bed a few hours later, Julian retreated to his office to study the neurotoxin more. He decided that he either needed to find the origin of the toxin or find out how she picked it up. Either way, he intended to contribute to the investigation. He spend most of the night working on his research, until he was startled out of his concentration by a shrill scream from the ICU.

Dr. Tarses arrived in the ICU before Julian did, both finding Commander Rzepka sitting straight up in bed, shaking and breathless.

"What happened?" Julian asked quickly, grabbing a medical tricorder to examine the commander.

"A dream. My god, it was a dream." Kym said, trying to catch her breath. She placed her hand on her chest and closed her eyes, trying to calm herself. "A silly dream."

Julian continued to examine the commander as Dr. Tarses put his hand on her shoulder.

"It's ok. It's over now. You're safe" Tarses said as he helped her lay back down. The head of the bed was elevated and she leaned her head back and took a deep breath. Tarses turned back to the monitors to silence them as Julian nodded at him. He smiled and nodded back before leaving the suite.

"Your epinephrine levels are elevated," Julian said as he closed the tricorder. "That must have been some dream. Want to talk about it?" Kym sensed his concern as he sat next to her bed. She was wide awake now.

"I - I don't even know. It was... so real... " Kym tried to put the pieces of the dream together. "I was in my quarters, and I looked up at the dining room and I saw a Tholian. He was eating breakfast. When he saw me looking at him, he disappeared. I got up to look for him, but he was gone. I walked out into the corridor and there was no one out there. I walked around the corner and he was there with a knife. I started to run, but he caught me. He grabbed he with his tentacle... claw... things... and bit me on the side of my head..." Kym reached up to feel the side of her head. "And then I started screaming."

"That's absurd," Julian said softly. "Tholians don't eat breakfast." He smiled at Kym, who let a small laugh escape. She was still very shaken from the dream and Julian's attempt at humor didn't help much. "Vivid dreams are not uncommon after a neuroleptic episode."

"It was just so strange. Tholian? I've never met one before, have you?" Kym said. Julian shook his head.

"No, but I hear they are pretty creepy. They can't even survive in our environment anyway, so you don't have to worry too much." Julian stood. "Can I get you anything while I'm in here?"

Kym shook her head again, taking another deep breath. Her heart was still pounding and she still felt very nervous.

"Do you want something to help you get back to sleep?" Julian suggested, noticing her discomfort. She shook her head again, not saying anything. Julian was concerned with her continued nervousness. "How about I stay until you fall back asleep?" He suggested. Kym smiled.

"You don't have to do that. I'm not six years old anymore." she said, trying to get comfortable.

"No, but it's still okay to be scared. You shouldn't have to be scared alone." Julian sat in the chair again. "Besides, I have plenty of reading to do."

"Now there's a true friend..." Kym trailed off. She thought about Ezri again and how much she was missed.

Soon Kym fell back sleep while Julian sat reading in the dark. If anything, he thought to himself as he looked over at his friend, who was still attached to several monitors, at least I did something good today.


	9. Chapter 8

"Careful, it's hot." Kira said as she let go of the cup. Kira lowered herself into the chair beside Kym's bed as Kym held the tea cup in her hands. Kym was already out of breath and leaned back against the head of the bed. She took a small sip of the tea, which stung her throat. It smelled like ginger and cinnamon.

Kym remembered the few months prior when Kira had a heart transplant. She was in a coma for several days. Kym sat at her bedside and read stories and security reports, and sometimes said nothing. She napped and sang songs. Kym had been on administrative leave during the two weeks that Kira was in a coma. She had discharged her weapon at an intruder brandishing a disruptor on the promenade who had tried to break into the security office.

"How long have you been here?" Kym asked quietly.

"About two hours. I have duty rosters to go through, so I thought I would go through them here. You've been sleeping the entire time. It's good, though. You need the rest." Kira spoke as Kym took another sip of tea. The tea warmed her belly and helped calm her upset stomach.

"What time is it?" Kym felt disoriented and lost not knowing whether it was night time or day time.

"1600." Kira said. Kym's eyes opened wide and she shook her head.

"This place is like a time vortex." Kym muttered as she took another sip of tea. She could hardly believe that she had slept the entire day. She hadn't slept that much in years.

Shocks of electricity paraded up her spine and into the base of her skull again. Her leg muscles spasmed as she thought about the poison that coursed through her body. She knew the toxin just needed to wear off on it's own. She hoped it wouldn't take too long. She had things to do – like jump into the investigation of her own attempted murder.

"Do you know how the investigation is going?" Kym asked Kira, who shook her head.

"I haven't been able to check in on it. We have circumstantial evidence of a transporter pattern in the area of your quarters, but we haven't be able to confirm. The only real thing we have to go on is the ensign that you ran into, which we have no record of even existing." Kira's voice sounded strained and Kym could sense she was growing frustrated. She also hadn't slept much the night before.

"Any plans for your upcoming birthday?" Kira asked, changing the subject to something more pleasant. Kym's birthday was less than a month away. She had been so busy the past few weeks that she didn't have much time to think about it. She normally didn't do much for her birthday anyway.

"Not yet. I haven't really thought about it, actually. I'd like to take some time off, but we'll see how that goes." Kym smiled. "Besides, 32 isn't a very exciting age, anyway."

Kira laughed. Nearing 40 herself, she wished she could be 32 again.

"We should have a party!" Kira suggested. "When was the last time you had a birthday party?" Kym thought.

"It's been... well, never. Maybe you're right. Did you just say to Ro that the crew needed to spend more time together?" Kym smiled again. "Perhaps I can stay in one piece for our next get-together." Kira laughed. A birthday celebration might be just what they needed. As the station's commanding officer, Kira resolved to herself that she would make it happen – for the crew's morale.

Kym leaned back again and handed Kira the empty cup.

"It was good. Thank you." Kym said. Her headache was starting to ease up, too.

"I thought about Tikri herb, but we're not sure how it would react with the toxin, so we'll skip that for now." Kira said. Kym remembered that Kira had suggested the Tikri Herb during her rehab a few years back. It supposedly strengthened the cell membranes of neurons, helping them fire more accurately. It did help her feel better after her stem cell transplant.

Kym appreciated the natural remedies. She hated taking medications, especially pain medications. She sighed and settled into her pillow. As she was about to strike up conversation about some of the new recruits aboard the station, Julian walked casually into the ICU suite.

"Evening, Commander, Colonial." He nodded each of them. "Kym, I have an incoming transmission for you from Starbase 254."

"Good evening, Julian." Kira responded. She stood, stretching her arms above her head. Looking down at Kym, she smiled. "My shift is about to end. I should do some rounds to make it look like I'm actually working. I'll swing by later with more tea?"

Kym nodded. "That would be great, thank you." Julian handed her the portable comm unit and she flipped on the small screen. The face of Commander Jonathan Meadows appeared, dressed in a black intelligence uniform.

"Kym?" he said.

"Jonathan. Hello," Kym said, smiling. She could feel her spirits lifting already. Julian had stepped out to offer her some privacy as she drew a deep breath. "How are you?"

"Apparently better than you. What the heck happened?!" he said, a look of concern on his face. Kym knew what he was thinking already - she had gotten to know him better than anyone during their partnership at the Intelligence Training Program.

"It's a long story. The important part is that I'm going to be fine. I promise." Kym said.

"The Admiral tells me that the murder spree is continuing. I'm sorry to hear that. Do you know of any leads yet? We're attempting to conduct an investigation here, but we're reaching a lot of dead ends I'm afraid." Meadows said. "I was just calling because I needed to see that you were alright. When I saw your name on the list of victims, well... I thought the worst." his voice was shaky.

"Come on. You know I'm too stubborn to die like this." she said, grinning. "Whoever did this will have to try harder if they want me out of the picture." Although she was joking, Meadows didn't think the joke was very funny. His red hair glistened in the ambient light of the conference room of Starbase 254 and Kym could see starlight shining in the window. "How's the assignment going there?"

"Boring. Quiet. Lifeless. I've been thinking about asking for a reassignment, in fact," he said. Kym raised her eyebrows.

"Oh? Whereto, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Deep Space Nine, actually. The Federation is passing the amendment for a few more operatives aboard the station. The Gamma Quadrant is still a hostile zone, and the Federation doesn't want anything to happen to the station. My mission will be reconnaissance, I'll be aboard the Defiant most of the time, I think..." he trailed off, thinking about all of the work needing to be done on DS9. And about how good it would be to be with Kym again.

"Are you serious?!" Kym shrieked. "That would be awesome!"

"I know. I've really missed you over these past few months. I figure, if I'm out on the frontier, I might as well be out there with you." Jonathan's eyes softened and peered into Kym's soul. "If I could get away, I would be there right now. You know that."

Kym didn't say anything. Her stomach did flips and a feeling of excitement filled her chest.

"Jon... it's really okay. I'm fine. Really. I should even be out of here by tomorrow." she said, trying to ease his concern. "Although it would be nice to see you."

"How about end of the month? I'll be finished with this assignment and I'll have a few days off. I'd really love to see the wormhole. And you." He said, his face lighting up. Kym smiled again.

"That sounds perfect. Once you nail down a date, let me know and I'll request some time off." she said.

"I hate to call and run, but I'm on duty in ten minutes. Hey, you take care of yourself and get better, okay? I'll need you to be my tour guide when I get my transfer approved." Jonathan smiled and winked. Kym giggled.

"Of course." she said. "And Jon? Thanks for calling. I appreciate it."

The screen went black as Meadows signed off. Kym leaned her head back in the chair and closed her eyes. She could almost picture Jonathan's face the first time he saw the wormhole.

"Friend of yours?" Julian suddenly said as Kym opened her eyes. He took the comm unit out of her hands and set it aside. Kym nodded.

"My partner from the SI training cycle. We've kind of stuck together since we graduated." she said. Jonathan Meadows had been one of the best friends she'd ever known - and was secretly hoping that maybe they could even be more than friends.

Julian nodded.

"He seems like a very nice guy." he said. He concentrated on the monitors and the padd in his hand for a few moments before looking up at Kym. "Your condition is improving every day. You should be well enough to be discharged tomorrow."

"Second best news I've heard all day." Kym said, grinning.

* * *

"Computer," Vaughn said, rubbing his eyes for the fifth time in ten minutes. "Show me every origin of the compound tryscopotherol within the Gamma quadrant." He truly felt as if he were chasing the same rabbit that Ro described earlier. His research was getting him no where and he was so tired that he started to research in circles. He vowed that after this last search, he would take a quick nap before resuming.

"No sources found." The computer suddenly said back. No sources... of course. Every inquiry was a dead end. Every possible road to an answer led to nowhere.

"Same luck as me, I gather?" Ro said from the doorway of the security office behind Vaughn, who spun his chair around.

"I thought you were taking a nap." Vaughn said gruffly. He was not pleased that his orders had been disobeyed.

"I did, sir. It's 0930." Ro said, walking over to the replicator and ordering a cup of raktajino. She turned back to Commander Vaughn. "Coffee for you as well, sir?" Vaughn shook his head.

"I need the origin of tryscopotherol. Have you ever heard of this compound before?" Vaughn said to Ro, who had approached the monitor and looked at it carefully.

"Isn't that a mining compound? It's used to draw lithium out of ice. I haven't seen it used in a very long time - in fact, I think Starfleet has outlawed it's use for quite some time." Ro said, taking a sip out of her cup. "Why are you looking for it?"

"Commander Rzepka had it in her system. We think it was the neurotoxin that the terrorist used to try and kill her." Vaughn said quietly.

Ro stood in silence. The Bajorans had used tryscopotherol during the occupation to infect Cardassian guards and escape from a mining camp. That was nearly fifteen years ago, and she hadn't seen it since then. It was a very toxic compound - even a small dose could kill a humanoid.

"I doubt that any Federation planet will have it. I would start searching each quadrant, planet by planet, until we find it. It's got to be out there somewhere." Ro noticed that the commander looked very tired. "Have you been at this all night?"

Vaughn nodded. "I'm about to let you take over. I need to tend to other matters." It had been over 26 hours since Commander Vaughn had taken a break, but he wanted one more look around the Replimat to try to catch anything the security team had missed.

"Ok," said Ro. "I'll let you know if I find anything here." Her head was aching and she was hungry, yet didn't have much of an appetite. She just wanted to get back to work.

"Thank you for keeping me informed, Lieutenant." Vaughn said as he made his way out of the security office.

As Vaughn made his way to the replimat for his usual coffee and doughnut, he thought about getting Starfleet Intelligence more involved. He was nearly positive that they had more clues on the situation than he did. He sat in silence for the fifteen minutes that it took him to eat his doughnut and drink his coffee. He watched the people file into and out of the replimat, nodding to most of them, ignoring the rest. After the coffee cup was empty, he got up, placed the cup back in the recycler, and headed out the door to the infirmary.

As Vaughn entered the infirmary, he was greeted by Dr. Guirani.

"Good morning, Commander! What can we do for you this morning?" She said cheerfully. Her short stature and bright smile often led people to tell her she was "cute," but Vaughn knew she was full of energy and a very aggressive raquetball player.

"Good Morning!" Vaughn said, trying to brighten up out of his sleep-deprived stupor. "I was hoping to catch Dr. Bashir for a few moments."

Guirani nodded.

"He's in his office," she said motioning her hand toward the glass doors.

Vaughn thanked her and made his way to Julian's office. He had his face buried in the monitor on his desk, a cup of coffee in his hand.

"Good morning, Doctor." Vaughn said, leaning against the doorway.

"Good morning!" Dr. Bashir said, looking up from his console. "What can I do for you, Commander?"

"I was hoping you could answer a few questions to help with the investigation." Vaughn said quietly.

"Of course, have a seat."

As Vaughn sat, Julian remotely shut the door to the office. Vaughn began speaking immediately.

"First, how is the commander this morning?" Vaughn asked.

"She's doing well. I plan to discharge her today." Julian said smiling. Vaughn nodded, letting a small sigh of relief escape. _At least one thing is going right,_ he thought.

"Good." Vaughn said. "I'm having a problem locating a source for this compound - the neurotoxin - you found in her system. Do you have an idea where it might have come from?" Vaughn said.

Julian shook his head.

"I've been researching the origin of the toxin. I haven't come up with anything. I know that the Romulans used it in biogenic weapons before the war. I haven't seen it or heard about it in several years though. Its illegal in the Federation now, so I doubt we'll find anything within the Federation."

"The compound is naturally sourced at very high temperatures, generally over 400 Kelvin. It is used to mine precious ores out of ice and has been used on many different planets - even Bajor used it for a time, I believe. Like I said, you won't find it within the Federation, so that leaves a host of other possibilities." Julian told Vaughn. Vaughn listened and nodded.

"This information is helpful, Doctor. I have a few more ideas on where to look. I will also contact Starfleet Intelligence and see what they have to say about it." Vaughn rubbed his burning eyes. "You think I can talk to the Commander?"

"I believe she's up now. Let me go see if the nurse has finished her rounds yet, I'll be right back." Julian got up and walked out of the office, leaving Vaughn to contemplate the new information that Julian gave him. Within a few moments, Julian came back and motioned for Vaughn to follow him.

In the ICU, Kym was already dressed in her uniform, sitting in a chair beside the biobed. She was waiting on paperwork to be signed before returning to her quarters.

"Well look at you," Vaughn said, smiling when he saw her. "Getting out of here soon, I suspect?"

"Yes sir. I'm looking forward to taking a shower and joining the investigation." Kym said. She was feeling nearly back to normal with minimal pain and only a small headache. The nurse handed Julian a padd, which he carefully looked over before signing.

"Commander Rzepka, you are a free woman. Your security escort is waiting for your outside, they will be with you constantly for the next few days. Take it easy today and I'll come by later to check on you, okay?" Julian said to Kym as she stood slowly. Her black uniform fit her body perfectly and it was good to be in it again.

"Thank you, doctor. I appreciate all of your help." Kym smiled. She looked at Vaughn, who was still standing there. "Feel like taking a walk?"

"Sure. Lead the way." Vaughn said. Kym slowly made her way out of the infirmary and met her security team out in the promenade. As she and Vaughn started toward the habitat ring, Vaughn started speaking.

"I'll have you know that we have been working day and night - all of us - to find out what happened to you and why. We are going to catch whoever has been doing this." Vaughn said. "If you can help in any way, I encourage you to. I was going to contact your commanding officer this afternoon to talk to her about the situation, but I think that perhaps you should."

"I thought about that this morning. It's a good idea - I will gather information today and I will let you know what I find." Kym said. She noticed Vaughn was very preoccupied and tired. "Have you been working all night?" she asked. Vaughn nodded.

"Several nights. You don't have to say it. I'm heading to bed after you safely get to your quarters." he said. "I want you to know that we're doing everything we can to help the investigation. Once you speak to your commanding officer, come down to the security office and we'll fill you in on what we already know."

They soon reached Kym's quarters and suddenly, she was alone. Her quarters were in immaculate condition. She ventured into the bedroom - just as clean as the living room. The Security Team had been here investigating, so she expected a bit of a mess. It was pristine.

She sat at her desk in the office area and stared at the black comm screen.

"Computer, put a priority one secure message through to Admiral Amanda Addison, Starfleet Intelligence, Paris, France. Earth." She finally said into the panel after she combed her hair with her fingers and licked her lips.

The computer complied and within a few minutes, the image of an older woman appeared on the screen. Her all black uniform sparkled with pips and honor ribbons. Her blonde hair glistened with the sun's setting rays beaming in her window.

"Good morning, Commander Rzepka. I take it you are feeling better today?" Admiral Addison said with a smile on her face.

"Good evening, Admiral. Yes, sir, I'm feeling much better, thank you." Kym said. "I called to speak with you about the investigation. I hope I've caught you a good time." The admiral picked up her mug and took a sip.

"I'm always available to speak with you, no matter what time it is. I'm glad you called. I have an assignment for you, pending your medical release." She said. "Do you know when you will be cleared to return to duty?"

"Today, if I'm not mistaken. Light duty for a few days, then full duty by the end of the week." Kym said. At least, that's what Julian had told her.

"Perfect. SI would like for you to take an active part in the investigation pertaining to the string of operative murders that have taken place recently. We are fairly sure that the murders have all been committed by a single entity, so this assignment should be fairly easy for you. I will forward you the information that I have gathered. I need you to use the station's crew to help you gather enough evidence for a conviction and for a capture. Since you've been up close and personal with this individual, I believe that you can offer a keen perspective on this investigation. Whatever resources you need are at your disposal. I will speak with Commander Vaughn and have him assist you where needed. You may also brief the stations security force, namely the Chief of Security, in order for them to assist you. This operation is on a need to know basis and will be categorized as level 4. I believe you can do this. I am placing full trust in you to keep this operation private. If you require assistance, please contact me and we will have a team out to you within 24 hours."

Kym nodded. She had a feeling this would happen.

"Aye, sir. I look forward to reading through your information and we will begin our own investigation immediately. I assure you, we will get to the bottom of this. I will be in touch, sir." Kym said.

"Thank you. And commander?" Addison said before signing off.

"Yes sir?" Kym said.

"I'm glad you're alright. Keep out of trouble for the next few days, okay?" Addison said, smiling. Kym smiled too. She was glad she didn't have much explaining to do. She merely nodded and signed off. She knew that the admiral really did trust her to take the mission to completion. Now, she just needed to figure out how to do it.

She stood up from her desk and stretched. Her stomach had been growling for the better part of an hour, so she ordered Hasperat out of the replicator and ate lunch in silence. She loved true silence.

After lunch, she got her padd and downloaded the information that Admiral Addison had sent. She lay down on her sofa with a soft blanket and began to read.

She started yawning... and feeling very sleepy...

_The door chime startled out of her sleepiness. She stood, letting the padd fall to the sofa. She answered the door, which revealed complete darkness when it opened. Odd, she thought. Is the electricity out? She stepped out into the corridor and saw a red flash stream by her. She looked down the corridor but couldn't see anything. _

_She reached for her weapon, but it was not there. She must have taken it out and put it on the table in her quarters. She stepped out into the hallway anyway, thinking that it was probably nothing. She didn't hear anyone out there with her - no security team, no officers, no people at all. _

_"Hello?" Nothing. She sensed nothing. _

_This is weird, she thought to herself. She stepped even further out into the corridor, letting the door hiss shut behind her. She still couldn't see anything, but she was sure she heard the door chime. Someone must be out here. _

_"Hello?" she said again. Nothing. _

_Walking down the corridor, she could see emergency lights on, but far in the distance. She started walking toward them. As she continued walking, she noticed that the walls weren't bulkheads, they were rocks. She must be in some kind of cave of some sort. The temperature was rising and she started to feel very uncomfortable. The rocks had distinct markings on them, like ancient scrolling. As she got closer to the lights, she could see two figures standing in front of an opening. _

_Finally, she thought. Perhaps they know what is going on. _

_"Hello?" She called again. the two figures looked up. Their crystal-like heads with white eyes stared directly at her. Their tall, red bodies seemed transparent, and they had many legs. _

_Tholians._

_"You again?" Kym said. "What are you doing here? Is this another dream?" She started getting very nervous. The Tholians looked at each other, not saying a word. For a minute she wondered if they even understood her. "Speak!" she shouted. Instead of speaking, they started moving toward her, she could see disruptors in their hands. _

_Oh god. Now I'm in trouble. She thought to yourself. She didn't waste too much time when she turned and started running. She had no idea where she was going, but she knew they were gaining on her. Running faster, she felt her feet flailing under her body. They were so close now, she could almost feel the heat radiating off their bodies. _

_"Noooo! NOO!" she started screaming as she felt their claws on her shoulder, gripping, piercing her flesh... _

"Kym! Wake up!" A familiar voice flooded her ears.

She opened her eyes. The lights nearly blinded her, causing her to squint her eyes back closed again. It was Julian. She could sense his presence without even seeing him. She felt his hand on her forehead, then on her cheek.

"Computer, dim lights." she heard Julian say. When she heard the computer comply, she opened her eyes.

"Oh my god. Oh my god." Kym muttered as she placed her trembling hands over her face. She was still lying on her sofa in her quarters. She felt her face wrinkle into a frown as she felt her body tense and start to shake. Julian must have come by to check on her and she didn't hear the door chime. He carefully examined her with his tricorder.

"It's okay, Kym. You were dreaming. It's okay." he said, putting his hand on her arm and trying to calm her. Her epinephrine levels were very high and her blood pressure was way above normal. He helped her sit up.

"A dream." Kym said, still trembling. _It seemed real to me..._ she thought. She looked up at Julian. "I didn't hear the door chime. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. When you didn't answer, I got nervous and came in. I'm glad you were only sleeping." Julian said, still looking at his tricorder. She seemed to be doing well other than the side effects of the dream. "What did you dream about that scared you so badly?"

"Tholians. Twice in two days." Kym said, her voice still shaking. She started breathing deeply and slowly to try to calm down. She couldn't believe the terror she felt during the dream. "It was so real. Unlike a normal dream. This one was different. It was real."

"Vivid dreams are a normal part of Post-Neuroleptic Shock Syndrome. You may have vivid dreams for a few more days. Due to your nervous system complexity, they may last up to a few weeks." Julian said. "The light and sound sensitivity will last a few more days too. Are you seeing rainbows?" he asked. Kym nodded. "It's all normal. We just need to wait for the symptoms to fade on their own. Thankfully, they are all just temporary." Julian explained.

Kym took a deep breath and nodded, already feeling better.

"Security is still at the door, right?" She asked Julian.

"Yes, they will be guarding your quarters for at least the next few days until we're sure that you're safe from an attack. The bulkheads around your quarters have also been armored so no one can beam in or out directly. You're safe. I assure you." He said. She believed him, but something told her that she needed to look more into these dreams. "How long have you been sleeping?"

"I don't know. What time is it?" She said, rubbing her eyes with both hands and finally feeling more calm.

"1730." he said. Kym opened her eyes wide.

"Well, in that case... about four and a half hours. There goes my early bedtime tonight." she said, smiling. She stretched her arms over her head, yawning.

"Are you feeling better now?" Julian asked, relaxing a bit himself. Kym nodded.

"I think so." She picked up her padd and placed it on the table. Julian stood from his crouched position on the floor and reached down a hand to help Kym up. She stood without taking it.

"Want to venture out for dinner with me? Maybe it will help you feel better. We'll be sure to take your security friends with us." Julian offered. Since Kym had been stuck in her quarters all day, she accepted the offer.

"I don't think I can handle Quarks, but the replimat will be okay." Kym said. Julian nodded, allowing her to lead the way.


	10. Chapter 9

_Intelligence Officer's Log. Stardate 54998.9 _

_The evidence that I've been able to uncover relating to the Operative Murder Spree is minimal, at best. The information that Commander Vaughn and Lieutenant Ro were able to uncover regarding_ _my own attempted murder was limited. I'm grasping at straws_ _here. _

_One clue that I think is interesting may not even be a clue at all. I've been having vivid dreams of a Tholian. His involvement in the dreams is centering around murder. I can't explain how it relates to this case, but I'm going to continue to investigate this rather unconventional avenue. _

_All I know is there will be another murder. I would be shocked if the murders suddenly stopped. The investigation must take a turn, or we will not have the resources to crack this case. We're moving as fast as we can with what little evidence we have and hoping for the best possible outcome. _

* * *

The following morning, Kira and Commander Rzepkachatted casually in Rzepka's over coffee before their shifts started. They got together once a week in Rzepka's office to catch up. They laughed and chatted for thirty minutes, before the conversation was interrupted.

_"Ops to Commander Rzepka." _ Kym's comm badge came alive with the call from ops. She touched her badge.

"Rzepka here."

_"Commander, you_ _have a priority one message incoming from Starfleet Command." _

"You can put it through to my office. Channel 12Omega 4." She said, making her way to the desk.

"I can give you some privacy..." Kira started, but Kym shook her head.

"It'll just be a second, I'm sure." Kym said as she sat down and turned on the console.

Admiral Addison's face appeared on the screen.

"Admiral." Kym said, straightening her tunic. "What can I do for you, sir?"

"Commander Rzepka, there has been another murder." Addison said dryly. Kym sat back in her black leather chair and sighed.

"Where?" Kym said. Her head was pounding and she could feel her heartrate picking up.

"Starbase 254. Special Operations officer. He was stabbed to death."

Kym shook her head in disgust. She had several acquaintances on Starbase 254.

"Who?" Kym asked hesitantly.

"Commander Johnathan Meadows." Addison said quietly. Kym's breath caught in her throat. Her face started getting hot with anger.

"Please forward the report when you have it, sir. I will analyze and get it back to you with anything I find." Kym said, realizing that Kira was still in the room. She just wanted to end the call.

"I will have it this afternoon. I would understand if you wish to be reassigned at this juncture. Just let me know." Addison said.

"No. No, I'm going to see this one through. You can trust me on that, sir."

"You'll be receiving the report soon. Let me know if you have questions." Addison said before the screen went black, her face replaced by a United Federation of Planets logo.

Kym placed her elbows on the desk, resting her face on top of her clasped hands. Her stomach turned in a knot and she was sure that she was going to vomit. The room started spinning as she tried to swallow what the Admiral just told her.

Kira stood and walked to her, placing her hand on Kym's shoulder.

"I'm sorry." Kira said.

"Me, too." Kym muttered, frozen in her contemplative position.

"Was he someone you knew?" Kira asked. Kym nodded.

"We were in the same training cycle. He was my partner." Kym said, trying to brush away the reality of what just happened.

Silence filled the room for several minutes. Kym finally stood from her chair and walked to the window, gazing out at the stars.

"I need to be on duty in five minutes. Let me know if there is something I can do?" Kira said gently. Kym nodded.

"Thank you, Nerys. I will." Kym forced herself to smile at Kira before turning back to the window. The doors hissed open and shut again before Kym turned and slammed her fist down hard on the windowsill. Her hand throbbed under the blow, bringing her back to reality. She had a lot of work to do.

* * *

That afternoon, Commander Vaughn and Commander Rzepka collaborated in the Security office. They were in the top secret meeting room with the door locked, a place the crew frequently referred to as "The Vault." Kym felt that this investigation should be public, but Vaughn thought otherwise.

"We need to find out what the Tholians have to do with this. They are involved somehow. I know it." Rzepka said to Vaughn. The several padds spread out on the table in front of them described murder weapons, devises used to transport, and other details involving the murders. Nothing about Tholians.

"Based on... a couple of dreams that you had? I don't know, Commander. Seems a bit farfetched to me." Vaughn said doubtfully. "Besides, how will you present that as evidence to pursue a perp?"

She didn't know. All she knew is that if they didn't get acting soon, someone else was going to die.

"Well, this compound is only manufactured and refined in environments that exceed 400 Kelvin. The TholianHomeworld is at least that hot. The real question is why would a Tholian want to murder Starfleet Intelligence officers?" Kym mused as she browsed through the padds on the desk.

"Wasn't the Tholian Embassy admitted into the Typhon pact recently?" Vaughn said. Kym gave him a sideways glance and thought for a minute.

"They did. About a year ago. They were admitted based on their knowledge of slipstream technology and their cloaking ability. The Pact was also interested in Tholian Web weapons, but I doubt that materialized any farther than curiosity. The Romulans have far more advanced weapon technology." Kym said. She had studied the Typhon pact for several months while she was in basic training. She knew that the Romulans had been in diplomatic concert with the Tholians for quite some time.

"Slipstream drive, eh?" Vaughn added. "Isn't that the very technology that Starfleet is trying to protect?"

"It is. We can't stop another civilization from developing it sooner, though. We do know that they are illegally building ships on a remote outpost - Pritanna II. The shipyard was built by..." Kym trailed off, trying to collect her thoughts in a coherent manner.

"By Tholians and Romulans." Vaughn added. Kym nodded. "Another piece of the puzzle." He added.

"Pritanna II is in the Delta quadrant. It would take several years just to get there. The only reason we know they exist is _Voyager _happened to trip over it when they were out there. We don't even know what it looks like." Kym said.

The two commanders sat in silence for the next half hour, reading and taking notes. Kym wondered if the Romulans had something to do with the events at SI. The Romulans had a vested interest in the Typhon Pact and would likely do anything to keep Starfleet from interfering. They knew of the compound - having had it used against them a few years prior in a biogenic weapon. How would they get their hands on the compound? Romulus was just as far from Tholia as anyone else, unless they had someone out there feeding it back to them.

The pieces just didn't fit. Kym's growing frustration was stemming from the lack of evidence against any one entity. Whoever was murdering these operatives was very good at covering it up.

"What about the Tal Shiar?" Vaughn suddenly said. Kym could sense his frustration too.

"They are clean enough to pull something like this. I don't think they would risk exposure though. They are precise - why would they use a different method of killing, some with a high probability of failure?" Kym said. "Besides, they wouldn't have been so sloppy with me, not with the knowledge that we would trace the compound back to them someway. I don't think it's them."

"Inside job?" Vaughn said, looking up from his padd. Kym looked him in the eyes. He was serious.

"God, I hope not." Kym said. "What about that transporter pattern?"

"No leads there. The substance hasn't been identified yet, and the origin of the transporter is still unknown. Still a dead end." Vaughn admitted. "The scramble pattern has been narrowed to Klingon, Federation, Romulan, or Andorian."

"Romulan. They keep coming up, don't they?" Kym said, starting to doubt her Tholian theory.

Kym thought that the Typhon Pact was somehow involved in the murders, judging from their behavior in the past. Kym knew that each operative had been killed a different way - one poisoning, a few shootings with different weapons, a bomb, one even got sucked out of an airlock... nothing correlated. No two killings were consistent. At each murder, hardly any evidence was found. If the Pact was involved, they were very good at maintaining secrecy.

The Pact knew that Starfleet Intelligence had a close eye on them. Kym accessed all information about the Typhon Pact and began reading. If she expected to catch the villain, better to understand him completely.

_As an opposing force to the __United Federation of Planets_ _and its allies, the Typhon Pactformed on Typhon I asan alliance of six interstellar states formed after the __Borg Invasion of 2381__. The pact consists_ _of the __Romulan Star Empire__, __Tzenkethi Coalition__, __Breen Confederacy__, __Gorn Hegemony__, __Tholian Assembly_ _and the __Holy Order of the Kinshaya._ _Each state has maintained total secrecy about the Pact as well as maintaining xenophobic and isolationist policies. All six states have current hostilities with the Federation and Klingon Empire._

_The Pact states have no desire to ally with the Federation or the Klingons_ _in the Borg resistance effort, formed their own government as a new major power against the might of the Federation. _

The deeper she got into the reading the more she felt herself being pulled into it. As a feeling of dizziness came over her, she looked up from her padd to see Vaughn missing. Her body was unable to move and she was unable to speak.

In the far corner of the room were two Tholians, collaborating. They held sniper rifles in their hands. One moved away and took aim at the window...

"Commander?"

Kym jerked her head to the left where she heard Vaughn's voice. A lock of brown hair fell into her face, which she brushed aside and back behind her ear.

"Commander, are you alright?" Vaughn said, confused by Kym's absentmindedness.

"Did you...? Were there...? - "Kym stammered, looking toward the window. The room was completely empty except for Vaughn and herself. "I just saw something very strange." She sensed confusion from the Commander, feeling confused and nervous herself.

"What?" Vaughn said.

"Tholians. Two of them. They were holding sniper rifles. Over there." Kym pointed to the window. "They were here."

"There is no one here except you and me." Vaughn said, putting down his padd with a sigh. "Perhaps it is time to wrap up our research for the day."

"NO!" Kym said, springing up from her chair, knocking it backwards. "They were here! I saw them! You doubt, but I tell you. They are real." Her agitation was growing quickly as Vaughn stood too.

"Commander, calm down." Vaughn calmly said.

"No, I won't! I can't stand sitting here debating with you while other operatives are out there getting killed. I can't stand it!" She walked over to the window where she saw the Tholians. She peered out of the window, but instead of stars, she saw a man dressed in a black Starfleet uniform sitting at a desk. He was reading. Suddenly, he slumped over his desk with a phaser burn in the back of his head. He was dead.

Kym gasped. She inched close to the glass until her nose was practically touching it, but all she could see were stars. Her heart was pounding and she could feel her palms getting sweaty.

"Another murder," was all she could squeeze out of her throat.

"How do you know that?" Vaughn asked, his frustration with Kym's antics reaching it's limit.

"I saw it!" Kym raised her voice, pointing to the window. "I just saw a man die in this window!"

"Kym, there is no one there." Vaughn said quietly, getting worried again. He reached for his comm badge.

"Vaughn to Doctor-" he started. Kym quickly cut him off.

"Don't you dare! Don't you DARE think there is something wrong with me! I'm not the one drowning in doubt and lack of evidence. Will you just trust me for once and listen?!" Kym was practically screaming at this point, nearing hysterics. Vaughn dropped his arms to his sides and stared at her. Kym realized that she must have sounded like a raving lunatic and took a deep breath to calm down.

"I think I'm seeing the murderer in my subconscious. I can't explain it. I saw the same Tholians in a dream. I saw another murder just now. Someone - or something - is connected to me somehow." Kym explained. Vaughn's blank face finally broke into a frown. He didn't say a word. Kym sensed his doubt stronger than before, which only made her angrier. She gathered up her padd and stormed out of the Vault, muttering on the way out.

"You're right. We're done here."

Kym blew past the security desk and out into the Promenade, her security detail following closely. She angrily walked past Quark's and the Klingon Restaurant, coming to a stop near the Replimat. She knew where she could go to calm down. She proceeded to the upper level of the Promenade, climbing every other step of the metal spiral staircase. Her pace slowed as she reached the upper level of the Replimat, realizing she had left her security detail far behind her. She meandered around to the back of the staircase, toward the windows where the stars twinkled brilliantly. Back in the corner, tucked behind a generator and a bulkhead was a lonely table with one chair - Kym's spot. When she was sitting in the chair, she could see out of the window and watch the blue and purple illumination across the tabletop when the wormhole opened and closed. She could be alone there.

As she sat in her chair behind her secluded table, she saw her security detail come closer. They seemed intent on staying near her, so she didn't argue. As long as they were not blocking her view of the wormhole, she didn't care. She laid her padd on the tabletop and placed her head on her hands, propping her face toward the window. As if on cue, the silvery blue wormhole emerged, twirling open and stretching out, as if it had just woken from a long, refreshing nap. It stayed opening, spinning in place for a few moments before it flashed shut, leaving Kym wishing for more.

Kym felt herself start to calm down. She wondered why she had become so angry with Commander Vaughn. She always had thought he was stiff, rigid, overbearing. She felt intimidated by him. Once he was assigned as her mentor, she noticed that he became even more stiff and overbearing. It irritated her to the bones, and though she wasn't surprised she snapped at him, she wondered why she finally reached a breaking point.

She watched the stars in silence for several minutes. Her security team took a table near hers and started chatting. The Promenade started looking more and more vacant as time went on later. Just as she started to feel very slightly sleepy, she heard a familiar voice.

"Do you ever get tired of looking at the stars?" Without turning her head away from the window, she shook her head.

"Never," she mumbled.

Julian pulled up a chair from a nearby table, turned it backwards, and sat in it, leaning his forearms on the back of the chair.

"Neither do I." he said. They sat for several minutes staring out the window, until the wormhole opened up again in whirlpool of brilliant blues and silvers, bringing a smile across Kym's face. She knew it was a good day when she saw the wormhole open twice in an hour.

"How was your day?" Julian suddenly asked, leaving Kym no choice but to pick up her head out of her hands and lean back in her chair. She looked at her friend, whose chin was propped on his folded forearms on the back of the chair.

"Frustrating. You?" Kym said. She wondered if Vaughn had talked to Julian about the evening's events, but couldn't sense anything unusual from Julian.

"Uneventful. The way I like it." he said, picking up his head. "Why was your day frustrating? What happened?"

"Vaughn." Kym said, turning her head back to the window. She felt her face getting hot again. "I don't really want to talk about it."

"Might help you feel better." Julian said casually, looking back out the window, too. The stars were drifting very slowly by as the station spun on it's axis. Kym took a deep breath, relishing in the moment of silence.

"I guess I just don't understand him very well. He pushes my buttons and I hate it. He challenges everything I say. He doubts my motives. I guess it's part of his job, but we just... clash." Kym admitted. "He doesn't trust me and I don't know why."

"And it bothers you." Julian quietly said.

"Yes it bothers me! How can I trust him as my mentor if he doesn't trust me?" Kym said, feeling her voice get louder. She was suddenly very glad that the Promenade was nearly empty.

"He's a tough character. It's sometimes hard to remember that he's got seventy years on us. Some people feel that it's more proper to earn trust, rather than be granted. Perhaps he's trying to teach you to be more doubtful." Julian said again, still not looking from his gaze out of the window. Kym pondered what he said for a moment. "He has a great deal of experience, Kym. And like it or not, you're a rookie again. He has every good reason not to trust you. The question is, what are you going to do to change his mind?"

"Do you trust me?" Kym suddenly said.

"Of course." Julian said without hesitation. Kym believed him.

"What did I do to prove that trust to you?" Kym asked, only expecting half an answer.

"I don't really know," he said. "I guess it just came over time. You know, as we got to know each other. The advice you offered me while Ezri and I were going through the break up... I knew I could trust you then." Kym sighed, then let her lip curl in a frown.

"That's not much help," she said, rolling her eyes.

"I never claimed to be a counselor," he quickly said back.

They both sat staring out the window again, not really knowing what else to say. Julian knew that Kym thought about what he said. He knew that she trusted him, too.

"I have an idea." Julian suddenly said, again. Kym looked at him again, feeling a slight sense of excitement.

"Last time you had an idea, I ended up filling out reports for days." Kym said and grinned.

"No no, this isn't like that. Come on. I have something I want to show you." He said, smiling too. He stood and placed his chair back at the table. Kym stood too.

"Where are we going?' Kym asked as Julian turned and started walking toward the staircase.

"Holosuite 1." Julian said over his shoulder as Kym followed, trailed by the security team. "I'm going to teach you how to doubt yourself."


	11. Chapter 10

"So, I'm supposed to figure out who murdered the professor and find the killer...in high heels?"

Kym stood in a large penthouse suite, furnished with lush brown leather sofas and a beautiful bar. Large picture windows filled the south wall of the room, shrouded by cream flowing curtains. She was dressed in a silk white pant suit with a red silk scarf around her neck. On her feet were red patent leather stiletto heels.

"Well, no, you don't have to wear heels." Julian said, straightening his bow tie. His black tuxedo fit him perfectly, but he was at least in flat wing tipped shoes. "You can wear something else."

"Computer," Kym said. "Replace Agent Stone's shoes with 2 inch heel patent leather ankle high boots. Red." The computer complied, replacing the shoes with much more comfortable boots.

"Boots?" Julian asked, walking to the bar and retrieving two glasses from the cabinet, placing them softly on he bar top. Kym walked to the side table beside one of the leather sofas, picked up a compact nine millimeter revolver and bent down to her boot, tucking the pocket sized gun inside the boot perfectly.

"Backup." she said, grinning.

"I think you're already starting to understand the game." Julian casually said, bending to retrieve a bottle of brandy from beneath the bar. "Drink?"

"Drink? You mean a holographic drink? Why even bother? Let's just get right to the mystery." Kym said, moving closer to the rosewood bar and perching herself on a stool. Her nearly elbow-length brown hair drifted around her in loose curls as she sat.

"Patience... you must have patience." Julian said. As he was pouring drinks into the glasses, they heard the door chime.

"That must be our first clue." Julian said as he headed for the door. _Clue?_ Kym thought. _Why would a clue ring the door chime?_

Julian returned with a piece of paper in his hand. He read the message on the paper out loud.

"This telegram is asking us to investigate the death of the brilliant Professor Frannie Smithe. She was a leading sociologist in the Norwegian Government. The police have ruled her death a suicide, but her daughter thinks otherwise." Julian said.

"How did she die?" Kym asked.

"Gunshot wound to the head. Weapon retrieved on the scene." Julian said. "Looks like this should be interesting."

"Perhaps we should start with the daughter?" Kym suggested. Julian nodded, then straightened his bow tie again.

"Let's go." he said.

Before she knew it, they were standing on the porch of a very large estate home. Dark green ivy climbed a wide concrete pillar to Kym's left. Shards of mulch scattered through the sidewalk as if the gardener hadn't been there in weeks. Julian knocked on the door and a very large woman dressed in a pink apron and yellow dress answered the door. The sun was setting over the horizon, casting a yellow glow on everything the light touched.

"May I help you?" the blonde haired woman said.

"My name is Julian Bashir. This is my associate, Alice Stone. We are here to speak with Miss Smithe. She is expecting us." Julian said. Kym didn't understand why she had to assume the role of a fictitious character when Julian got to be himself. Seemed a little... unfair. The lady in the apron showed Julian and Kym into the parlor, where the rose wallpaper seemed to go on for miles and the pink upholstered wing backed chairs seemed inviting.

"Please have a seat. I will let Miss Smithe know you are here." the lady said before turning and waddling up the stairs. Julian looked at Kym and raised his eyebrows. He slipped his hands in his pockets and remained quiet. Kym could feel her shoulder harness rubbing uncomfortably under her arm where the grip of her gun dug into her rib. She tried to adjust herself without looking too obvious, but was unsuccessful.

Within a few moments, a young lady dressed in a very beautiful blue long sleeved dress floated down the stairs. She gracefully held onto the shiny wooden railing as she took each step quietly and slowly.

"Master Bashir!" the young lady breathed as she reached the bottom of the stairs, holding out her hand. Her face was long and her black hair was swept back into a loose romantic bun. Julian took her hand, leaned down to kiss it, and let it go.

"Miss Smithe?" He inquired.

"Yes, thank you for coming. I appreciate your attention." Miss Smithe said. "Who is your companion?"

"This is Agent Alice Stone. She will be assisting me with the investigation." Julian said. Before Kym had a chance to introduce herself, Miss Smithe burst into obviously fake tears.

"Oh, I am so glad you're helping me! My poor mother! I just know she couldn't have done this! I just know someone else is responsible! I just... I'm so distraught!" Miss Smithe's theatrics included placing the back of her hand across her forehead as Julian retrieved a handkerchief from his interior jacket pocket and handed it to her. He motioned to the other end of the parlor, where three more chairs and a table sat empty.

"Please, let's sit down and talk. Agent Stone and I have a few questions for you." Julian said, placing his hand on the small of her back. Smithe led the way, gracefully floating across the floor and finally turning and landing softly in a chair. She gripped Julian's handkerchief in her hand as she looked up at Julian and Kym.

"I don't really know where to start." Smithe said as Julian and Kym took the seats on either side of Smithe.

"Can you start with why you think your mother was murdered?" Kym said. She was accustomed to taking notes, but she would just have to rely on her own memory and the photographic memory of the doctor.

"Yes. I believe my father did it. He hates my mother, as long as I can remember. He was always jealous of her success. With her dead, he stands to inherit her estate above me." Smithe said. "My father's gun was the murder weapon."

"Can you fill us in on your family's history? Particularly your family's wealth and success?" Kym pressed.

"My mother is - was - an esteemed sociologist. Her parents were independently wealthy stock brokers. My great-grandfather was an architect. We come from a long line of brilliant minds. My father... he was... a bit of an outcast. He married my mother when they were young and when I was born, he left us." She said, her lip quivering. "My mother never wrote him out of her will. He stands to inherit half of her estate."

"Why didn't your mother write him out of the will when he left?" Kym asked.

"Mother always hoped that he would come back. She never gave up hope. She loved him, but only God knows why." Smithe said. She dabbed her eye with Juilan's handkerchief and sighed. "I just know that he had something to do with this."

Before Kym had a chance to ask any more questions, she got a sudden twisting feeling in her stomach and a strong feeling of premonition. She stood out of her chair and looked at Julian, who looked at her quixotically.

"Computer, freeze program." Kym said.

"What's wro-" Julian said, but interrupted by the comm system.

"_Opps to Commander Rzepka_." Kym heard over the speaker in the holosuite.

"Rzepka here. What is it, Ensign?" she said, getting very nervous.

"_You have a message incoming from Starfleet command, sir_." Ensign ch'Thane said over the comm.

"What priority?" she said.

_"No priority, sir. It's Admiral Addison._"

"Thank you, Ensign, I'll take it in Holosuite 1."

"Computer, doors." Kym said. As the doors appeared, Kym walked to the comm panel beside them. She flipped on the screen, Admiral Addison's face was twisted in a scowl.

"Commander, did I catch you at a poor time?" Addison said, a strong look of concern on her face.

"No, sir. Not at all." she said. Julian stood and ambled closer to Kym, curious as to what was going on.

"I won't keep you long. Commander, I'm calling to inform you of new developments. Another murder. I have already sent the report to your secure line." she said. Kym's breath caught in her throat and she felt the twisting getting tighter in her stomach. Another murder. They were coming more frequently than Kym could keep up with.

"Thank you, sir. I will look at it and forward my analysis to you." Kym said. Her knees felt weak and she felt her stomach doing flips.

"Let me know if you need anything. Let's conference at 0800 tomorrow morning." Addison said. Kym nodded.

"We will speak then. Thank you." Kym turned off the monitor and leaned her hand on the doorframe. Julian approached, a strong feeling of concern washed over him.

"Are you okay?" Julian said softly. Kym turned to him, feeling her temper starting to flare up for an unknown reason.

"No," she said. "No, I'm not. My friends, my counterparts, are dying and I have no idea why." Kym sat absently in the pink wing backed chair near the door. Julian sat in the other one, his gaze fixed on her black eyes. "My temper was short with Vaughn today. I was insubordinate. I was so angry because - " Kym stopped herself. She didn't want to sound crazy again to Julian. She didn't want him to know that she was having hallucinations in addition to the dreams.

"Why were you angry?" Julian pressed, intent on what Kym had to say. He was being nothing more than a good listener and Kym trusted him not to react irrationally. She lifted her gaze to meet his, surveying his face for a sign of doubt. Nothing.

"Julian, I had a premonition about the call I just received. I had another premonition about the next murder this afternoon. It was more like a hallucination. During my meeting with Commander Vaughn. It felt so real." Kym started. "I tried to explain to Vaughn the significance of the dreams, and the premonitions, but he only doubted me. He wants hard evidence and it's not going to happen. I get a sense of discontent with the case from him. It's like he doesn't share my vested interest in solving it. He doesn't... care... as much as I do."

"This must be unnerving for you. It would be for me." Julian said. "Are you sure you're having premonitions about the murders, or are you so wrapped up with little sleep that your mind is playing tricks on you?"

"I don't know," Kym admitted. "I have been sleeping fine, but you're right. I've been consumed by this investigation. Addison suggested pulling me off the case this morning - I think I'm seeing her point. But I can't. I just can't walk away now."

"Why did she suggest pulling you off the case?" Julian asked, confused. Kym felt her palms getting sweaty and her heart beating faster in her chest.

"My partner was killed yesterday." Kym said. Julian noticed Kym's nervousness and decided they should call it a night. He stood out of his chair.

"Let's continue our program another time." he suggested. Kym nodded and stood, still deep in thought about the investigation that existed outside of the current fantasy.

"Computer, save and end program," Julian called as the entire scenery disappeared, returning the two officers to their Starfleet uniforms. Kym turned to the door and walked out, Julian following closely behind. They walked together a few meters out into Quark's bar, where only a handful of customers remained. It was late - close to 0200. The bar was about to close.

"I need to get to bed. I have a meeting in six hours." Kym said, turning to Julian. "Thank you for listening. We'll solve the mystery later." Julian smiled and nodded.

"Let me know if you need anything." he said. Kym nodded and headed out the doors of the bar as Juilan sat to talk to Quark.

She walked slowly, her security team directly behind her, back to her quarters. She sensed a flash of nervousness out of one of the guards, soon realizing that he thought he saw something out of the corner of his eyes. Almost instinctively, she started looking around, to see if she noticed anything out of the ordinary. The corridor was quiet, only a few passing officers here and there. Nothing notable ._Perhaps my mind _is _playing tricks on me_, she thought.

Back in her quarters, Kym sat in silence, still studying the compound. Tryscopotherol, she discovered, was also once used as a capital punishment drug - given a high enough dosage, it could be vaporized through a gas chamber, killing several people at once. Many different species used it as their drug of choice several years ago - many even a hundred years ago. The farther she dug into the classified Starfleet data base, the more she found.

She didn't stop reading until she found something that burned an image in her mind. The compound was used to murder any outsider who ever stepped foot on the planet Tholia. Back at least a hundred years ago, the compound was mined in the depths of a remote mountain range on the planet, which was surrounded by burning hot lava. The compound was then taken and sold on the black market, including to Starfleet, before it became illegal there.

The compound had been used to murder outsiders since - as a symbolic death of anyone trying to meddle in Tholian business or disrupt Tholian affairs. The drug was injected to unsuspecting people in their sleep, finding themselves dead within a few hours.

This particular piece of information caught Kym's eye. She knew that Starfleet Intelligence had information on the slipstream technology that the Typhon Pact as putting together - in fact, reports had recently come out about another illegal ship building yard being built by the Breen. Could the Tholians really be behind these murders?

But that doesn't explain the other murders. Why wouldn't they use the same method for each murder?

She looked back at the previous murders again, hoping to find something that she missed before.

The first murder was aboard the _Gryphon_. An operative was working on the sensor logs on one of the runabouts when the bay depressurized, suddenly, sending him flying out into space. Upon investigation, no evidence of foul play was found, but later a correlation was found between the runabout's aft sensor log. When it was activated, it triggered the bay doors to open.

Curious, Kym retrieved the logs from the runabout with the problematic sensor log. It was on an away mission three weeks prior to the accident to the Alpha quadrant near the Klingon border. They encountered an unidentified ship that fired an energy weapon, but it sustained no damage. The runabout retreated and returned to _Gryphon_. No investigation was ever conducted.

Kym felt her heart rate pick up. Tholia was near the Klingon border. What if that unidentified ship was a Tholian vessel, which fired a sabotage energy signature to the runabout? Is this possible?

She knew there was only one place to find out. Quickly, at that.

"Computer," she said to the blank screen at her desk. "What time is it in San Francisco?"

"1535 hours." the computer responded.

"Put a priority one secure channel message to Master Chief Miles O'Brien, Starfleet Academy, San Francisco." The computer complied and Kym straightened her black collar and her pips while she waited. Within a few moments, Miles O'Brien appeared on the screen, smiling.

"Rzepka! This is a surprise! How are you?!"

"I'm doing great, Chief. I'm looking for some help, is this a good time to talk?" Kym said, smiling back. It was good to see her old boss again.

"It is a good time. I just dismissed my class. I have to say, it's strange seeing you in a new color. Especially that one." O'Brien said. Kym laughed.

"Sometimes, I scare myself in the mirror, sir. I understand." She said, letting her smile fade. "I have to ask you something strange, but I can't tell you why I need to know. Are you comfortable sharing information under these conditions?"

"I suppose. I trust you, so why not. Ask away." O'Brien responded. Kym double checked the security of the call, then proceeded.

"I need to know if it is possible to embed a launch sequence modulator or a command modulator into an external energy weapon." Kym said. "I also need to know if that modulator can be remotely activated by a command control panel."

O'Brien raised his eyebrows. He thought for a moment.

"I believe it is possible. I remember reading about a Maquis ship that modified it's tractor beam to include the coordinates of their outpost and transferred it to another ship when the beam was fired. It is possible to embed anything within an energy weapon. It would take quite a bit of expertise of the ship systems, but it is possible." O'Brien thought more about the subject. "If the engineer was looking to sabotage, he or she would imbed the weapon with a computer directional sequence to plant the command inside the computer's systems. It's not terribly hard for an experienced hacker."

"What kind of knowledge would I need to conduct a test of this theory? Would I need to know the target ship's systems, or could I program the weapon to scan for certain panel locations, just picking a random position for activation?" Kym asked. She could see O'Brien becoming very uncomfortable.

"You're not planning to try this, are you?" He asked.

"Chief, I can't tell you anything more than what I'm asking. But please, trust that I'm not doing anything stupid." Kym smiled at him with her sweet, melt him in your hand smile.

"Of course you're not. Of course. No. You don't need to know the ship's systems to target a remote command. You could enter a modulating frequency in a command sequence, and it will embed itself into the computer's system where it fits. It would be impossible for you to determine exactly where, but if that doesn't matter, then it will work." The chief explained. The attacker must have known that the operative would investigate the runabout after it returned to the ship.

"What civilizations are capable of this type of technology? Do you know?" Kym asked.

"Sure. Federation, Romulans, maybe Breen. Possibly Cardiassans." O'Brien said.

"Klingons?" Kym said hesitantly She remembered that the attack took place near the Klingon border.

"No, probably not. Not unless they had help." O'Brien said. He was struggling to keep his questions quiet as Kym asked hers.

"Tholian?" Kym asked slowly.

"Certianly not. Tholian technology is far less advanced than our own." O'Brien said.

"Chief, this is all very helpful. I appreciate your help. Tell me, how are Keiko and the kids?" Kym said, letting the smile overtake her face again.

"They are great! Molly is in fifth grade now, Yoshi is in first. They are doing really great." O'Brien said. "And you're welcome. I hope it did help. Give me a call back if you need anything else."

"I will," said Kym. "And Chief? This conversation never happened."

He nodded and signed off.

It's possible. Is it probable? Kym didn't know. Since O'Brien listed two members of the Typhon Pact in his estimation of players who could pull off this type of maneuver, she placed more concentration on the Romulans than before. The Romulan Star Empire was very angry with the Federation and had been for several years, but the Imperial Order was an ally. Why would the Romulans be near the Klingon border, in the Alpha quadrant? And Federation sensors would have been able to detect the Romulan ship. The one that fired was unable to be identified, even the crew aboard was unidentifiable.

Kym hadn't thought about the Breen before now. It's possible that they were involved, but it wasn't like their nature to target one person at a time. If they were to attack Starfleet Intelligence, they would target a conference, the headquarters, or a ship. They would go for a large-scale murder, opposed to picking and choosing specific targets.

All of this left her nearly back to square one. She may have figured out how the ship's bay doors opened, but she couldn't prove it. Not without a simulation. She would have to collaborate with Gryphon's engineer, and she didn't have time for such nonsense.

"Computer, time." she said, realizing that she'd probably been studying for a few hours.

"The time is 0600 hours."

Kym lay her forehead on the edge of her desk. Two hours left until the conference with Addison. She decided that she should probably get Vaughn involved with the meeting and was sure that he was awake by now. She lifted her head and touched her comm badge.

"Rzepka to Commander Vaughn." she said.

"Vaughn here." she heard.

"Commander, can you meet me in the Vault at 0800 hours? We have a conference call." She said dryly. She was still feeling slightly annoyed with the commander.

"Will do. See you then." he said, signing off the comm link. It seemed that he was still annoyed too.

Exhausted, Kym dragged herself out of her chair and to the replicator. She ordered a cup of coffee and a blueberry scone.

No time for sleeping now, she thought to herself as she sat at her secure comm. She activated the secure file on the last murder, temporarily ignoring Jonathan Meadows' file.

The latest murder happened on Vulcan. The operative was seated at his desk when a phase energy weapon of unknown origin was fired through the north window and struck him in the back of the head, killing him instantly. His partner found him when he didn't show up for a meeting.

The operative's latest project notes were blank. Figures, thought Kym. No one knows how to keep accurate records anymore.

She became curious about what Meadows was working on at the time he was killed. She thumbed through the information provided on Meadows' murder, but the portion on current assignments was left blank. She flipped through the other operatives' files. Only one other operative had any kind of job description - herself. Where were the job descriptions?

She continued to look for any kind of indication of work assignments and realized that each operative had been on administrative assignment. Current assignment was always blank. She was very concerned by the lack of information.

_Well_, she thought to herself. _At least they have something in common now._


	12. Chapter 11

_Personal Log, Commander Kymberly Rzepka. Stardate 54104.6_

_I'd be lying if I said that this investigation was going well. While I'm incredibly thankful that I'm even alive, I'm starting to hate this investigation. There has to be something to grasp onto and take somewhere. I don't understand why nothing is lining up. Something isn't right here._

_I have so many questions and so few answers._

_I've been exhausted beyond what I could imagine. I've been forcing myself to stay awake for the sake of the investigation but it's been excruciating. The relationship that I've been trying to build with Vaughn is falling apart right in front of me. I don't know what I've done, but it's obvious this is my fault..._

Kym's jumbled thoughts were interrupted by her door chime. She flipped over the padd she was working on and turned toward the door. She knew it was Julian before she even said come in.

"Come in!" she finally said. The doctor entered her quarters, carrying his med kit. "Evening, Julian. Come to obsess and worry a bit more?" She said, folding her arms and grinning.

"I don't obsess. Not even a little. Worry... now that's a different story. I just came by to see how you were feeling," he said.

"I'd be feeling better if I stopped running into dead ends. I feel like banging my head on the desk," she said, rubbing the bridge of her nose in frustration. "Otherwise, I'm feeling fine."

"Still a tough case, eh?" Julian said as he placed his med kit down on the desk and opened it. "Mind if I take a quick look?" Kym shook her head as Julian took out his tricorder and started scanning.

"Looks like your serotonin levels are approaching normal. Everything looks in order. Are you having any pain today?" Julian said with a smile on his face. He felt relieved. Kym knew he always worried too much about everything.

"Nothing too bad. Certainly nothing worse than normal." Kym said. Julian put away his tricorder and closed the med kit.

"I'll have you cleared for full duty by tomorrow," he said, picking up the medkit.

"Can I ask you something?" Kym said quickly before he turned to leave.

"Sure."

"The dreams. Is there something I can do to get them to... continue?" She hesitantly asked. Julian furrowed his dark eyebrows in confusion while he contemplated what she said.

"Why? They scared the skin off of you." Julian said.

"I think they contain clues about what is happening in the SI community. I can't explain it, but I think... they are clues." Kym realized that she probably sounded crazy.

"Why do you feel that way?" Julian sat on the arm of the large chair, looking at Kym.

"I feel a connection to the dreams. I feel like someone is trying to talk to me through them. Like I said, I can't explain it. I didn't dream last night, but if there is a way that we can make the dreams come back, I would like to try."

"I can try to lower your serotonin levels. A dose of prednisolone would probably do it. It's a bit risky - it will increase your threshold for pain and it could affect your central nervous system, but it would nearly certainly trigger your vivid dreams. I'd want to monitor you while you are sleeping." Julian said. "Is this really necessary for the investigation? Is there no other way?"

"We've reached nothing but dead ends. I am grasping at strings here. I just don't know what direction to go. I feel like the dreams are pointed. Someone - or something - is trying to send a message." Kym said. "Just one more dream could contain the answer."

"Alright. Alright, we'll try it. I can get a portable cortical monitor so I can monitor your vital signs in the infirmary. If there is any complication, even a small one, I'm waking you up and dosing you with an SSRI." Julian concluded. He wasn't thrilled about the decision, but he couldn't resist a good mystery. Kym knew it.

"Any chance you might be able to monitor from here? I want to keep this as quiet as possible, even from the other doctors. I don't want any information about this to leak out to the crew. I'm under strict gag orders and I'm already breaking them by asking for your help." Kym confessed. "If something bad happens, I will vouch for you."

Julian sighed.

"You can't vouch if you're comatose. Regardless, I agree with the secrecy. We don't need more eyes on this investigation than we already have." he said. "I'll be back at 2300. Don't sleep before then." He turned and immediately walked out.

_Boy, this will look awkward to the security guards_, Kym though. _What am I getting myself into?_

The two hours passed quickly with Kym continuing her research. At nearly exactly 2300, her door chime rang.

"Come in." she said from her desk without looking up. Julian entered her quarters with his medkit in one hand and another black bag in another hand. He entered the room quietly, sitting on the sofa and unpacking his equipment. Kym was already dressed in her nightgown, but she was still working.

Julian loaded a hypospray with the prednisolone, keeping another with a seratonin-specific reuptake inhibitor. He collected the cortical monitor and programmed it.

"You ready, Kym?" he suddenly asked. Kym could sense a feeling of nervousness from him but brushed it aside. Kym turned off all three padds she was working on and placed them face down on the desk. She got up and sat down on the sofa next to Julian.

"This is a cortical monitor." he said, holding the round silver instrument in his hand. "It will tell me if your neural function is normal or not. If the seratonin levels in your brain get too low this device will start an alarm in this receiver." he pointed to the large silver box on the table. "Then I'm pulling the plug." He attached the monitor just below her right ear and activated it. Kym could sense his worry, which wasn't anything new, but this time it was different. Protection? Was she sensing a sense of protection from him?

Julian held up the hypospray.

"This is your ticket to the nightmare train." he said. "Try not to fall off." He injected her neck with the prednisolone and immediately she felt light headed. She took a deep breath and started to feel very sleepy.

"Will you be here until morning? I can make up the guest room for you." Kym suggested.

"I'll just stay out here. It's no big deal. You should get to bed. I'll be right out here if you need me." Julian said. Kym looked at him and sensed his uneasiness. He was afraid of getting caught doing something wrong.

"Thank you for this. I hope we can get some answers." Kym said. Julian smiled at her.

"What kind of a friend would I be if I didn't help when you needed it?" He said. "Now, go get your dream on."

Kym got up and headed into the bedroom. She pulled back the sheets and lay down in her bed without turning the light on. She felt safe with Julian in her quarters with her - safer than the night before. She knew that she didn't have anything to worry about, but having someone in her quarters with her was very helpful.

She closed her eyes. She could hear Julian unpacking a padd from his bag and then ordering a red leaf hot tea from the replicator. She was glad he was making himself at home. She was sure that if the situation didn't involve a mystery, Julian wouldn't be involved at all. He couldn't resist a good mystery novel.

_Kym suddenly heard a loud noise, like something falling over. She sat up in bed, waiting to hear another noise. When she didn't hear anything, she got out of bed to investigate. She slowly walked out into the living room, not sensing anything._

_"Julian?" she said. The living room was empty and dark. She reached up to feel her neck behind her ear. The monitor wasn't there._

_This is it, she thought. This is a dream. Now to find whatever I'm looking for. She waited a few moments until she heard the noise again. Of course it was out in the corridor. Kym knew that it was important not to be afraid. It was only a dream._

_Still dressed in her nightgown, she walked through the door of her quarters and out into the corridor. It was dark and cold. Her bare feet could feel the hard floor under them as if she were really standing in the corridor. She turned and started walking down the corridor toward the noise. It got louder and louder as she finally approached a large white cylandrical light. It's glow cast an erie aura on the corridor, leading to the a very large, open door. She kept walking._

_There. She saw them. Two Tholians, standing near a Podium of a large assembly hall. She recognized Federation emblems on the doors and curtians. They were quietly talking to each other, but Kym couldn't understand what they were saying. The language was a series of clicks and whistles. She continued to approach, feeling her heart start to pound in her chest. Calm down, Kym, she said to herself. It's only a dream. They can't hurt you._

_As she got closer to the Tholians, one looked up at her. She froze in her tracks. It tapped the other Tholian and they both looked at her._

_"What are you doing?' She finally asked, not expecting a response. She noticed that one of the aliens was holding a sniper rifle - a very sophisticated one. They both started to approach her. She remained still._

_One of the Tholians placed his claw on her shoulder and looked at her closely._

_"You are here. Listen to us." he said to her._

_"Okay. I need to talk to you first."_

_"You are dead. You shouldn't talk. You should listen." The Tholian seemed aggravated and turned his back to her._

_"NO! I need to talk to you. What is happening here? What are you doing?" Kym shouted, feeling herself becoming more and more angry. Her palms felt sweaty and her stomach was doing flips._

_"We are eliminating a threat. Listen to the threat." The Tholian said, moving farther away from Kym and still talking to the other insect-like being with him._

_"What kind of threat?" Kym pressed, moving closer to them._

_"I do not have time for this! Our culture is being threatened! We must eliminate the interruption and eradicate the threat." the Tholian appeared very agitated._

_"Interruption? Starfleet? What are we interrupting?" Kym said, feeling herself getting more curious about what he was telling her. "Please tell me."_

_"Our cause. The human is interrupting our cause. YOU are interrupting our cause. This mission must not fail. You must listen." The Tholian said, still with his back to her._

_"WHAT cause? WHAT mission? I don't know what you are talking about. If I should be dead, why don't you just tell me?" Kym yelled. The Tholian stopped what he was doing and looked up. He turned to face her. His white eyes glowed and his outer carapace was nearly glowing red._

_"Pay attention, Human. You hear me. You just won't listen. I will take care of you all. Each one. I will eliminate the threat."_

_Threat? Threat of what?_

_"Who put you up to this?" Kym said._

_The Tholian turned and put his bony claw on her shoulder._

_"The pact will not fail."_

_He suddenly pushed her off her feet, sending her flailing into the audience pit. She started to scream as she fell, knowing that she was going to die._

_Kym's eyes flew open. She could hardly catch her breath as her heart pounded furiously in her chest. She felt a presence in the room and quickly sat straight up in bed, frantically looking around. Julian was sitting on the side of her bed with her._

"Kym. It's over. You're safe," he said quickly. Kym knew that she was awake, but strangely she still felt like she was in danger. She jumped up out of her bed and dashed to the door of her quarters, letting it hiss open in front of her. She took a few steps out and peered up and down the corridor. She could feel the smooth industrial carpeted floor under her bare feet. Soft blue lights filled her vision in the quiet corridor.

"Commander, are you alright?" one of the security guards suddenly asked. His sudden voice startled her, causing her heart rate to pick up again with another surge of adrenaline. She turned to face the guards and Julian, who was standing in the doorway. She tried to catch her breath but she felt like she had run a marathon.

"Come back inside." Julian said, holding out his hand. Kym took a few steps toward the door as Julian guided her by the small of her back. The guards were very confused.

In her quarters, Kym sat on the sofa quietly. She still couldn't catch her breath. She felt her hands start to shake as she realized the dream was in fact, over. She wasn't dead.

Julian knelt in front of her with his tricorder out. She stared blankly at her lap, trying to make sense out of what she just saw and heard. As her adrenaline levels started dropping, she started trembling even harder. Julian put down his tricorder and sat on the sofa beside her, putting his hand over hers on her knee.

"Kym, you're safe," he tried reassuring her again. She looked up at him, her dark eyes still wide with fear. She felt paralyzed.

"No. I should be dead." She said to him, her voice quiet and fearful. The entire weeks' events came flooding to her, that someone had gotten into her quarters specifically to kill her; that if she hadn't gone out that night, she could have died; that Section 31, one of her arch nemeses, actually helped her survive. Ro saved her life by convincing her to come out, Julian saved her life with his quick thinking as a physician, and she couldn't control any of it. She felt so violated. She hated not having control. Suddenly, her face started to wrinkle and she closed her eyes. Here come the tears again, she thought.

She suddenly felt herself in Julian's embrace as the tears began to silently fall. He held his hand softly on the back of her head, letting her lay her head on his shoulder. He felt his embrace alone could fix all of her problems and keep her safe. He didn't say anything but Kym could sense a feeling of confusion and sorrow streaming out of his consciousness. She felt his body's warmth through his uniform and let her face rest against the side of his neck. The stress of the week melted away with each tear.

He held her tighter, trying to help her feel more secure and letting her cry, for at least ten solid minutes, until she started to calm down and she pulled away from him.

"Julian. Someone is trying to talk to me. Someone involved with these murders." Kym said to him, sniffing and wiping her face off, trying to collect her thoughts before the memory of the dream dissipated.

"The Romulans?" Julian asked, confused. Kym shook her head and took a deep breath to calm down.

"Tholian. I'm seeing... something... through the Tholian. I'm in his subconscious."

"Or he's in yours." Julian said. He carefully reached behind her ear and removed the cortical monitor. He held it in his hand for a few minutes, looking at it's green and red lights. "What now?"

"I don't know." Kym said, standing and starting to pace the room, stopping briefly to look out the window. "Computer, time."

"The time is 0216 hours."

"Two a.m." Kym mumbled to herself. Julian had already started packing up the medical equipment, suspecting that Kym probably wasn't going back to bed any time soon. "I need to get to the Security office," she said a bit louder.

"Why? It's the middle of the night. What can you possibly do right now?" Julian said.

"I need to find out where they were. The conference building. It was Federation. They were in a Federation building." Kym rambled off, walking into the bedroom to get dressed.

"Given your current mental state, I'm not sure that you should be working right now." Julian said to her. He was concerned for her agitated state. She was usually a woman of composure, nearly always maintaining a level head about everything. Now she sounded a bit crazy.

"What do you mean, my mental state?" Kym snapped back, emerging from the bedroom while fastening her shoulder harness. She holstered her phaser into the harness and turned back to the chair to retrieve her jacket. "I'm in the middle of finding a murderer, an assassin, and you're worried about my fragile mental state? How about the other operatives out there who are about to die? What about them?"

Kym looked up at him while zipping her jacket. He knew better than to stop her from going to do her research. If he were in her position, he would probably do the same thing.

"I didn't know you were concealed." Julian said, surprised.

"You still don't." she said. "I'm heading to the security office. Julian, thank you again. I appreciate your help." Julian had already gathered his equipment and his medkit and was walking out behind her.

"I'm on call for the rest of the night, so let me know if you need anything. Drink some water, you're a bit dehydrated. And calm down." He said as they both entered the dark corridor and turned in opposite directions.


	13. Chapter 12

The promenade was dark and peaceful in the middle of the night. Sometimes, it almost felt creepy like an abandoned city when it was deserted. Literally anyone could be lurking in the shadows, waiting to jump out and grab anyone who dared walk through alone.

Commander Rzepka felt gratitude for her security guards as she quietly entered the security office with her escorts around 2:30 a.m.

"You gentlemen can wait here." she told her escorts as they entered the Vault inside the office. They both complied and waited outside the door as the commander entered the room.

"Computer," she started right away. "show me on the view screen every Federation Conference center Embassy in the Alpha quadrant. It has red curtains and a silver Federation seal on the door."

The list showed on the screen in the front of the room. Thirty five conference centers appeared with the same description that she had given.

"Narrow search to those with a deep audience pit."

The list shortened to fifteen centers.

"Now," Kym muttered to herself. "Which one. There has to be a clue here. Which one were you in...?"

An hour later, Commander Rzepka was still pondering the dream, the Tholians, and her situation. Her mind was very tired and her thoughts were fleeting. Thinking that perhaps she should go to bed, she suddenly received a priority one call in the office she was in. She programmed the comm to display the call on the large screen.

Admiral Addison's face appeared on the screen. She wasn't happy.

"Commander, I didn't expect to see you awake at this hour." she said.

"I had some research that couldn't wait, sir. Is there something wrong?" Kym suddenly felt very uneasy.

"There has been another incident. Kym, another operative has been killed." She said. Her face looked very worried.

"Are you kidding me? Where?" Kym sat down and steadied herself against the table.

"Trentalis Prime. In the Gala Caves. An operative was there to scope out a remote meeting place for the Typhon Pact. She was murdered in cold blood by an unidentified disrupter. They are getting more brash, now. They are tired of planning out their attacks. Or, this one caught them by surprise." When Addison said that the operative had been murdered in the cave, it all started to piece itself together.

Kym felt the blood rush away from her face. She thought she could have thrown up right there on the conference table.

"Can you send me the classified report?" Kym mustered out.

"I already have. I just wanted to call and make you aware of the situation and see if you had any questions." Addison said.

"I'll look it over and call you tomorrow." Kym said back. Addison nodded solemnly and signed off. Kym knew that Addison had uploaded the information to Kym's classified database, which was only accessible from her quarters. She was thinking about heading back there anyway.

Then it hit her. The reality of the situation hit her over the head like a runaway shuttlecraft. The dreams were predictions of the next murder scene.

"Computer!" she practically screamed, now completely wide awake. "List every Federation assembly hall in the Alpha Quadrant that will be hosting a Starfleet Intelligence Conference in the next month."

One location appeared on the list on the screen. The colony of Cestus III.

She knew that's where the killer would be. She wasn't going to let him get away from her grasp. Tholian or not, she was about to find out.

* * *

The next morning, Commander Vaughn impatiently drummed his fingers on the white sanitized table as he waited in the replimat for Commander Rzepka. _It's not like her to be late,_ he thought to himself. He looked at his chrono: 0532. 32 minutes late.

"Computer, locate Commander Rzepka." Commander Vaughn quietly said into the nearly vacant replimat.

_"Commander Rzepka is in the Security Office."_

Vaughn's face twisted. It seemed she had either forgotten about their weekly breakfast plans or she was held up with something. He finished his cold coffee and put the mug back in the recycler. He headed out the replimat doors and into the promenade. It was nearly empty at such an early hour, the only lights visible were the ones emitted from shops that were preparing for the day, the infirmary, and the Security office.

He strolled down the hall until he reached the security office. Inside, he addressed Lieutenant Ro sitting at her desk.

"A bit early for your shift, Lieutenant?"

"I had a few things to file this morning before my shift started, sir," she said. "It's only 30 minutes before shift change. Something I can help you with?"

"Commander Rzepka here?" he said dryly.

"In the Vault."

"Thank you." Vaughn turned and walked through the double door in the security office and turned to face the door of the Vault. He rang the chime. In a few moments, the doors were unlocked and they slid open.

"Good morning, Commander." Kym said. "What brings you out so early in the morning?" She had the floor plan for the Cestus Embassy sprawled out before her and she was taking notes.

"I had a breakfast meeting, but I was the only attendee." Vaughn said. Kym could sense his sarcasm before she sensed his disappointment.

"Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry - I completely forgot. I've been at this all night and I'm afraid I got a little carried away." She said, picking up the multiple padds off the table and starting to file them away.

"It's alright. What are you working on anyway?' Vaughn asked, curious about the investigation.

"Just a hunch. Gotta follow every single one. You never know when one will be the winner." Kym said. "Still have time for breakfast?"

"Sure. I bet you could use a cup of coffee anyhow." Vaughn said. The commanders left the Vault and headed back toward the replimat. They ate their breakfast without even mentioning the investigation, which was how Kym liked it. She knew that he wanted to help her - as her mentor, he felt obligated to help her - but she wanted to do this one on her own. It was time that she grew up a little in the SI field and this was a perfect opportunity.

After breakfast, Commander Rzepka called Admiral Addison back. She knew that the Admiral would be sleeping, but it couldn't wait. She planned to be off the station by dinnertime.

"Commander," Admiral Addison blinked, then rubbed her eyes. "Everything okay?"

"No, sir. I believe I have pinpointed the location of the next assassination." Kym said hurriedly. "I would like permission to covertly investigate."

Addison sat up straighter in her chair, leaning into the screen. "How did you figure this?"

"I know this is going to sound crazy, but I believe that I have been telepathically connecting with the individual responsible for attempting to kill me. I saw the caves on Trentalis Prime. And I've seen the next location." Kym said, praying that the Admiral would somehow understand.

"You know that I trust you, Commander. I wouldn't have recommended you for the DS9 position if I didn't trust you. Where is the location?" Addison said.

"The Federation Embassy at the Colony of Cestus III, sir. The Starfleet Security conference." Kym said. "The worst that can happen is the assassin isn't there. Then we start our investigation back up."

"No, the worst that can happen is you could be killed." Addison said. "That conference is in two days. It will take you several hours on a runabout to get there. You should get going."

Kym breathed a sigh of both relief and fear.

"I will, sir. You will have a full report on what I find there." Kym said.

"I know I will. Either my deputy or I will meet you there to offer a security release and an escort home. You're going to need some support if you do find him." Addison said. "We have to be smart about this - you need all bases covered. Let's not make this a recovery mission, either. We would like him alive."

"I will do my best, sir." Kym said, feeling her heartrate pick up.

"I know you will. Good luck." Addison said, signing off.

Kym sat in her chair for a few moments. She needed to map out the layout of the embassy and study so she knew where she was going. She grabbed the padd that had the floor plan of the embassy and walked out the door to a physical therapy appointment.

* * *

"What are you reading?"

Lieutenant Laurie Dobbs, Kym's physical therapist, broke the silence with her question. She was performing electromagnetic reconstructive therapy on Kym's pelvis, for which she lay perfectly flat and still for the better part of twenty minutes. The therapy usually left her with a high range of motion in her hips and less pain, but today it was just a nuisance.

"Just some boring security stuff." Kym lied. She was studying Tholian culture and military history. She needed to know how they would react to one of their own being captured for crimes against the Federation. She needed to do her best to avoid a war at all costs.

"You work too much, Commander." Dobbs said as turned off the bright blue electron light and put her instrument down. She placed her hands under Kym's knee and lifted her leg to stretch her hip.

"Deep breath and relax..." Dobbs trailed off as she pressed Kym's hip into the socket, letting it rotate up, stretching Kym's pelvic ligament. Kym tensed up with pain, but soon relaxed, knowing that it would hurt less that way.

"I do not. Working a lot and working too much are different things." Kym argued. She felt the muscles in her left flank and her left hamstring tense up as Dobbs stopped pushing.

"Have you been in the gym yet this week?" Dobbs asked. Kym kept reading.

"Not yet. Was planning on going this afternoon if you don't break my leg off before then." Kym sarcastically said back.

"This hip is pretty stiff. I bet the other one is too." Dobbs said, placing Kym's leg gently back down and walking around the bio bed. She picked up Kym's right leg and felt for the tendons in her hip. Pressing Kym's hip joint into her pelvis, Dobbs could tell that her right hip was worse than the left. The scowl on Kym's face confirmed her suspicion.

"I'm going to do some ultrasound therapy for your stiffness. You free for another fifteen minutes?" Dobbs asked. In truth, Kym didn't really have time for the appointment to begin with._ However,_ she thought,_ if I need to do some running or jumping in the next few days, then better go with the ultrasound_.

"I am. Go ahead" Kym said, looking back at her padd. She was not getting much reading done at this rate.

"Dobbs to Infirmary. I need a consult in PT on for an ultrasonic therapy session please." Lieutenant Dobbs said into her comm badge as she lifted both of Kym's knees and placed a small wedge under them to flatten out her pelvis.

_"On my way,"_ Dr. Tarses responded. Kym's frustration level was rising. She had planned to leave the station at 1800 hours, and it was already pushing 1400. She still had not prepared an escape plan from the Embassy or what runabout she would be able to take. She hadn't even eaten lunch.

Adding to her irritation, she didn't care much for Dr. Tarses. She had a hard time sensing what he was feeling and thinking and didn't trust him completely. Kym always felt nervous around him for some reason, even though he had given her no reason to feel animosity. He was a quarter Romulan, with dark eyes and a round jaw. He had a very colorful Starfleet career, including one Court Marshall and a few bumps along the way.

Regardless, he was a good doctor. He completely repaired Ro's spine when she was injured. He was a skilled attending physician.

"Afternoon Commander, Lieutenant." Tarses said as he entered the suite and walked to the left far wall to pick up a medical scanner.

"Afternoon." Kym muttered, still burying her face in her reading. Dr. Tarses approached the bio bed with his scanner out. He began scanning Kym's hips and talking to Lieutenant Dobbs.

"Ultrasound on the hips?" He asked her.

"Yes sir. Flexibility is down by 25 percent, torsion is down by nearly 30 percent." Dobbs said. "I need validation on frequency, sir."

The doctor and the physical therapist continued to chat as Kym continued to read. She couldn't waste time waiting for them to finish.

"Commander?" Dr. Tarses said loudly.

"Yes?" Kym said, placing the padd down on her chest.

"Do you have an objection to returning tomorrow for a follow up scan?" Tarses said. "I'm sure Dr. Bashir is going to want to take a look at your hip flexors."

"Actually, I'm completely booked solid tomorrow. I don't think I'll have the time." Kym lied. _Come on, just do your ultrasound and let me get out of here.._.

Noting the look of disapproval on Dr. Tarses' face, Kym perked up a bit.

"I can do the following morning, though," she said. Tarses reluctantly nodded.

"Let me see if he wants to see you now... " Tarses said as he turned to call Dr. Bashir. Kym wanted to slug him. _I don't have time for this!_ she thought frantically to herself.

Within a few moments, Tarses returned.

"Go ahead with the ultrasonic therapy. Dr. Bashir will be here within fifteen minutes to take a look. I'm sorry for the delay, Commander." Tarses said. _You're not sorry..._ she thought to herself.

"It's alright," she lied again. "Can't be helped."

The Lieutenant started the uncomfortable ultrasonic radiation treatment. She dug the ultrasound wand into Kym's hip joint, causing her to squirm under the discomfort.

"I'm sorry, Commander. I know it's unpleasant, but I'm almost finished. Just a few more minutes..." Dobbs encouraged.

As promised, within fifteen minutes, Julian entered the suite rubbing one eye, appearing as if he had been sleeping.

"Afternoon, Kym. I take it your day is going well?' Julian said, reaching for the padd from Dr. Tarses.

"Bilateral hip flexor torsion down by thirty percent. Thought you would like to come see." Tarses explained. "The commander cannot make it in tomorrow morning for a follow up."

"What are you doing tomorrow morning?' Julian casually asked Kym, not looking up from the padd as he read.

"I have a meeting." Kym said quietly. Julian gave her a cross-eyed look, then put the padd down on the console.

"Alright, let's have a look" Julian picked up her right knee with both hands and bent it, flexing her knee up to her chest. Kym winced in pain. He straightened her leg back out, gently twisting the hip bone in place. He placed his fingertips on the hip joint, feeling for the tendon.

"Deep breath and let it out..." he quickly said as Kym did what he asked. As she breathed out, he pressed hard into her hip joint, causing Kym to flinch again and blink her eyes in response.

"I'm sorry about that," he said, still feeling for evidence of dysfunction on the hip flexor. "You've been doing a lot of sitting."

"I have. I've been working 16 hour shifts for the past few days. I haven't had much time to hit the gym." Kym confessed.

"You'll need a few sessions of ultrasonic therapy, I'm afraid. Might need a dose of a muscle relaxer for the next one." Julian said, placing her leg gently back down on the bio bed. He walked around the other side and lifted her left leg the same way, feeling the hip joint for tightness. "This one isn't so bad, but we can't let your right hip continue to be so stiff." He turned to the physical therapist after returning her leg back down to the bed. "Let's start daily treatments starting tomorrow afternoon and run for seven days. You can administer the muscle relaxer tomorrow as well."

"Tomorrow is no good. It will have to be the day following." Kym argued, feeling her face getting hot.

"What are you doing tomorrow afternoon?" Julian said, getting exasperate himself. Kym gave him an _I can't tell you that_ look. He understood.

"Lieutenant, Doctor, will you excuse us please?" Julian said to Dobbs and Tarses. They both nodded and left the suite, letting the doors slide shut behind them.

"What's going on?" he said, helping Kym sit up. Her legs dangled over the side of the bed, placing strain on her already inflamed hips.

"I will be off the station tomorrow. Probably for the next day too but I can't be sure." Kym said, trying to remain discreet.

"Anything I should know about?" he asked, suddenly growing concerned. His dark eyebrows furrowed and his lips pressed together in a concerned frown. Kym merely shook her head.

"My CO knows. With any luck, I'll be back in two days, and then you can ultrasound my hips all you want." Kym said.

Julian stood there staring at her for a few moments, then nodded.

"Alright. Come see me when you get back. And for the love of God, be careful. Come back in one piece." Kym stood up from the bio bed, feeling the stiffness in her hips returning already. She looked at Julian, still sensing a great amount of worry from him.

"I'm always careful." she said as she turned and left the physical therapy suite.


	14. Chapter 13

Commander Rzepka's security clearance allowed her to get through the shuttle bay checkpoint without anyone batting an eye. She bypased the security protocols easily, reprogramming them to erase her launch command after it was executed. She felt a surge of adrenaline course through her body as she entered the runabout, closing the door behind her. She quietly initiated the launch sequence, opening the doors with her own security code. She felt guilty and rebellious by leaving unannounced, even though her Commanding Officer knew what she was doing.

As soon as Ganges saw space in front of her, Kym typed in the coordinates for Cestus III. She knew she would be there in six hours, and she hoped no one would notice that she was gone in that amount of time.

Black space swallowed Ganges up and before she knew it, she was staring at stars whizzing by at warp speed. She programmed the runabout to auto-piolit and within a few minutes, they were light years away from the station.

She sat back in her chair and began to run though her head the plan for finding the person responsible for the murders. While she hoped the Typhon Pact wasn't involved, she couldn't help but wonder what she would do if she met a great deal of resistance. She fount it very unlikely the Pact would engage the Federation by assassinating their operatives. They didn't want a war, they just didn't want to share their technology.

Suddenly, she was out of thoughts. What if she didn't find the Tholian? What if she was wasting her time?

She spent the next six hours reading, napping, and catching up on station security reports. When the runabout's computer alerted her that they were entering orbit at Cestus III, she knew it was showtime. She dressed in underarmor, loaded her concealed weapons, and beamed to the surface right outside the door of the embassy.

* * *

"Well, perhaps you should go check, Elias." Admiral Addison said to Commander Vaughn. She called looking for assistance, but she didn't say why.

"Amanda," Vaughn said into the screen. "We have not detected any runabouts leaving the station in the past two days. But for you, I will send a scout down there to check." He punched a few buttons on his console from his office in opps, until engine room answered.

_"Nog here, sir._" he heard over the comm system.

"Mr. Nog, can you physically confirm that all runabouts are accounted for, please?"

_"Yes, sir. Is there a problem sir?"_ Nog said from the other end. Vaughn could hear his foot steps as he walked next door to the runabout pad.

"Not that I know of. I just need a confirmation." Vaughn said. A few moments passed before Nog's voice came back over the comm, sounding slightly panicked.

_"Sir. Ganges is missing."_

"Is it signed out?" Vaughn said back, his voice growing with concern.

_"No, sir. It's not signed out. I have no log of -_ "

"Thank you, Lieutenant. I'll get back with you." Vaughn said as he logged off and stared back at Addison who was grinning in pride.

"Now you want to listen to what I have to say?" she said, not giving Vaughn the satisfaction of asking how she knew that _Ganges_ was missing.

"You have my attention now." Vaughn said.

"I have a better idea. Take the Defiant with a skeleton senior crew and meet me at these coordinates." She patched through several numbers of the starship that she was aboard. "Meet me in four hours. I'll explain everything then." The screen went black, leaving Vaughn to ponder what just happened.

"Computer, locate Commander Kymberli Rzepka." He hesitantly commanded the computer, getting a sickened feeling is his gut. He already knew she wasn't there.

_"Commander Rzepka is not aboard the station."_

"Damn it," he muttered. Vaughn jumped up from his desk, heading toward the door. Out in Opps, he commanded the comm officer to get all level five senior personnel to the Defiant immediately. He practically ran down to the docking ring and within twenty minutes, the _Defiant_ was undocking, heading for Addison's coordinates at maximum warp.

* * *

"….so, I told her to go. I knew she was going to do it whether I said yes or no. In my opinion, she has a vested interest in finding this monster. She'll get him." Admiral Addison said to Commander Vaughn in his office aboard the _Defiant_ over tea. They still had seven more hours before they reached Cestus III.

"I still can't believe you let her go alone. She's still a rookie. She could be killed. Hell, she was already almost killed!" Vaughn felt his temper approaching unprofessional limits as he talked with the Admiral, who was as non-chalant and calm as he'd ever seen her. She already knew what Kym would be up against when she reached Cestus III.

"That's why we're following her." Addison said with a smile. She knew of Kym's capabilities. She was not even slightly worried that something bad would happen. "I don't intend for this to be a recovery mission, Commander. If I intended that, I would be aboard my own ship."

"Then why exactly are we following her?" Vaughn said, slightly confused.

"In case she meets resistance. If she captures our murderer, we don't know if he won't tip off a warship that is closeby. She might need our firepower to cover her. We're just there for backup." Addison said. "The conference isn't for at least another eight hours, so we have plenty of time. She knows we're coming. Well, she knows I'm coming. I thought the _Defiant_ would be bonus to that arrangement."

"I still don't like her to be out there alone." Vaughn sighed.

"You can't protect her from everything. You mentor her, guide her, and keep an eye on her when you can. But you can't keep her from reaching out to her own capabilities. I think she could be an excellent Special Ops agent one day. She just needs to reach out and grab it." Addison sat back in her chair, sipping her tea. "You regretting this assignment already? It's only been two months."

"No. No, I'm not regretting anything. Rzepka is a fine operative. I can tell she is learning a great deal already. She is young. She has a long way to go." Vaughn said. Addison laughed.

"Elias, to you, everyone is young."

* * *

Commander Rzepka silently squinted and peered through the scope of her phase rifle. The Tholian's short, wide body was in her sight, but she didn't see a weapon in his claw-like hand. His yellow bio-suit registered as high temperature in her thermal-imaging scope viewfinder. His body was skillfully hidden behind a dark red velvet curtain on the second floor balcony of the embassy, hers was deftly hidden behind the pillar across the stadium. Seeing his red, insect-like arms through his bio suit, she hoped that the bio suit wasn't armored. She felt a wave of nervousness come over her but it was too late to turn back now. She had the murderer in her view. She couldn't call for back up. She just needed him to do something stupid.

His head peeked out from the side of the curtain, his sights on the speaker of the assembly – a highly regarded intelligence specialist - who was situated on the first floor on the opposite end of the building. His speech had just started and the assembly room was full of Federation citizens. Kym had no problem getting into the embassy with her weapons – posing as an armed operative was easy. She had no idea how the Tholian was able to get into the embassy. So much was still unknown about the Tholians. They never really came out into any public place and rarely made contact with species that were not their own. The environment on their home world and their star ships was very hot. Kym knew that they were collective telepaths, but she didn't know much past that.

"Come on..." she whispered nervously as she gripped her rifle and held it close to her face, still peering through the scope. "What are you waiting for...?"

As if he could hear her, he suddenly ducked out of her view. Looking up quickly from her scope, she saw his bug-like body scurry through the balcony and out of her sight.

"Son of a bitch." she muttered as she moved quickly through the second floor. She scurried toward the back of the media platform, directly above the speaker. She moved weightlessly through the darkness, not making a sound, searching every nook and corner for the Tholian. Nothing. Where did he go?

She didn't sense anyone in her area, so she kept moving. She had no idea what the Tholian was planning to do to the speaker, she just knew that if she didn't stop him, the speaker wouldn't live to see the reception after the assembly.

Then she sensed him. He was close. Closer than she originally thought. She ducked behind a large transformer, leaned her back against the black structure, and held her rifle tight against her body, wishing she had shot him when she had the chance.

He was getting closer.

She briefly wondered if Addison and the team were in orbit yet. She had the frequency of Addison's personal comm link programmed into her own comm badge, and would reach her with just a call. She wondered what she would do after she captured him. Call Addison? Call security, then Addison?

She decided she could figure that out when she got there. For now, she knew she had to face him. Holding her breath, she spun up and out from behind the transformer and saw the Tholian with his back to her.

"Drop your weapon." she said firmly, pointing her weapon directly at the back of his torso, praying he had a universal translator. Immediately, his disruptor hit the floor and his hands were in the air. "Now turn around slowly."

Kym's breath caught in her throat. The Tholian was bright red through his yellow bio-suit. His outer carapace showed a murky fluid flowing throughout his body. His head, encased in a clear bio helmet, was faceted and mantis-like with large triangular white eyes. He was just as she had seen in her vivid dreams, without the bio suit. His hands remaining in the air, he spoke telepathically to Kym.

_"You came. Just like I thought you would."_ He said. His voice sounded electronic, almost automated.

_"Yes."_ Kym spoke telepathically back to him, feeling her heart rate pick up. _"How did you know I was coming?"_

_" I thought you had been killed. You are stronger than I thought."_ He said, still not moving. She didn't sense any emotion from him at all, which frightened her even more.

_"Why are you doing this?"_ Kym asked, wondering why she was having a conversation with a killer. Her curiosity get the best of her - she wanted an explanation.

_"I'm not. I'm trying to stop this."_ the Tholian said. _"It's going too far. I have to stop this."_

Kym lowered her weapon slightly. She glared at the Tholian, who still had his hands in the air.

_"What do you mean?"_ she said.

_"Him."_ The Tholian pointed over Kym's shoulder and to the balcony behind her. She turned to see a Romulan face peeking out from behind a pillar, slowly drawing a weapon and pointing it to the speaker of the assembly.

_Shit_, she thought. _I need back up._


	15. Chapter 14

"We're approaching the coordinates, sir." Ensign Prynn Tenmei announced. Vaughn stood from his command chair, his knees popping as he straightened them. He frequently reminded himself that he was getting too old to go chasing after mysteries like this one.

"On screen. Scan the planet for the commander." Vaughn wiped his sweaty palms on the pants of his uniform as he stared at the blue and green planet, waiting for the results of the scan.

"Commander Rzepka is inside the Embassy. _Ganges_ is in close proximity of her coordinates as well." Tenmei responded. "I'm also reading Tholian and Romulan bio signs, along with 925 other bio signs inside the Embassy."

"She needs back up now," Vaughn said out loud, turning and walking to the rear of the bridge to the transporter pad. "Send me down within 100 meters of her location. If I don't call you back in twenty minutes, send down a security team. Lieutenant, you have the bridge."

Within seconds, Vaughn dematerialized, leaving the bridge crew confused and with a heightened sense of awareness. Lieutenant Sam Bowers assumed the captain's seat and calmly waited as the Defiant orbited the planet quietly.

* * *

_"Stay here."_ Kym commanded, reaching down and grabbing the Tholian's weapon. _"If you try anything funny, I will kill you."_

Kym darted off behind the curtain, cautiously leaving the Tholian in the dark. Her footsteps were light, her breath was silent. As she darted between pillars and curtians, she wondered what she would say to the Romulan, who was dressed in black and had a weapon pointed to the speaker.

She didn't have much time to think. Suddenly, she found herself staring at the Romulan's back. She sensed him still contemplating the shot, so she decided that diplomacy was the way to go. Raising her weapon, she finally spoke.

"Drop your weapon and turn around," she said firmly. The Romulan stood straight up. He was well over six feet tall - towering over Kym's five foot two frame. He turned with his weapon in his hand.

"Weapon on the ground." Kym said again.

"Commander Rzepka. I didn't expect to see you again." the Romulan said, letting his rifle drop to his feet. It careened off the floor with several small bounces, coming to a rest on front of his left show. He stood with his hands at his sides and a eerie grin on his face.

"Surprise," Kym said dryly. "Hands in the air. You're work here is done." The Romulan complied, raising his hands.

"Starfleet Intelligence has knowledge of our slipstream warp technology. The Typhon Pact will not tolerate any interruptions. They have not been successful in eliminating the problem with Starfleet, so I decided to take care of it myself." The Romulan man shifted his weight from one leg to another and Kym could sense him becoming uncomfortable. She could also sense that he was lying. "If you kill me, someone else will pick up where I left off."

"You are working alone?" Kym asked, gripping her phase rifle tighter. _Please don't make me shoot you,_ she thought to herself.

"Yes. My government would not have part in assassinating Starfleet officials, so I did it myself." Another lie. Kym had enough.

"Don't lie to me! Tell me the truth. _Now_." she demanded angrily.

"It is the truth." he lied again. Kym decided the clock was ticking and stopped arguing with him.

"Well, you're about to have a lot of explaining to do." Kym said. "It's over. On the ground. Now."

The Romulan started to get on the ground, one knee at a time, until he saw a shadow behind Commander Rzepka. Kym felt it too, turning slightly to get a better sense. Vaughn.

As she quickly looked back at the Romulan, she noticed him reaching for a weapon. She fired her rifle directly at his chest at the exact moment he drew and fired his disruptor, hitting Kym in her right shoulder. The blast knocked her back into the transformer, her thin body landing with a loud thud and her rifle flying in the air. As the rifle hit the ground, the scope broke off and landed a few feet away.

Vaughn rushed out of the darkness to Kym and knelt down as she was sitting up, holding her burning shoulder with her right hand. At first the thought that her rifle misfired, exploding into her shoulder. When she reached for her injury, she realized it was a disruptor burn.

"Shit, that hurt." she said, her voice loud and full of adrenaline. She turned to Vaughn. "What the hell are you doing here?!" Commander Vaughn looked at her wound, then helped her up.

"Same thing as you. To stop a murder. Yours, in particular." He said calmly.

They both looked for the Romulan, who had fallen backwards and over the side of the balcony, landing on the platform above the audience nearly twenty feet below. The commanders peered over the side of the balcony.

"Wow." Commander Rzepka said, pausing. "That was... dramatic."

They both stared at his twisted body, blood starting to stream from the back of his head. He was dead. Kym couldn't believe her eyes.

"How was that rifle programmed, anyway?" Vaughn said, still looking at the remains of the Romulan.

"Stun." Kym said, still not looking up either.

"Well," Vaughn said, his voice expressionless. "I'd say he's stunned."

Kym knew within a few seconds, a security team would be arriving, but she picked up her broken rifle anyway. It dangled in her hand at her side, her other arm searing with wild pain. At first she thought he had blown her arm off, but another look down at her limp arm confirmed that at least it was still attached. And on fire.

She suddenly remembered the Tholian, who was still probably standing near the transformer.

"The Tholian," she said to Vaughn, rushing off back behind the curtained area. Vaughn stayed close behind her.

"What Tholian?" he asked.

Before Kym could answer, they arrived back in the transformer area, where the Tholian was still standing in the exact spot where Kym had left him.

"Boy, am I glad you're still here." she said to him, noting his own feeling of relief.

_"I couldn't leave if I wanted to. I haven't released you yet."_ he telepathically said. _"I've been telepathically connected to you by a resonance transmitter chip I transported into your body when he transported the poison into you. As I worked with the Romulan on this operation, I've been feeding information to you. I needed Starfleet to know what was going on."_

_"What?"_ Kym said telepathically, leaving Vaughn wondering what was going on. Before the Tholian could answer, two security teams ran into the area, their weapons drawn with several pointing to Kym. She dropped her rifle to the floor and raised her uninjured hand. Vaughn raised both hands as well.

"Identify yourself!" one of the security guards screamed.

"Commander second class Kymberli Rzepka, Starfleet Intelligence operative. Identification number 34Alpha50. I have a Level four security clearance. I fired my weapon after the Romulan discharged his disruptor. I have a concealed phase-pistol under my right arm and another on my left ankle." Kym said loudly and firmly. "The perpetrator is incapacitated."

"Commander first class Elias Vaughn, USS Defiant. Identification number 20Delta87. I have a standard issue side arm on my right hip. I am merely a foolish bystander." Commander Vaughn announced. Kym giggled under her breath. Perhaps in seventy more years, she would develop a sense of humor, too.

The security officer lowered his weapon, instructed his team to do the same. Kym and Vaughn dropped their arms. The security team stared at the Romulan on the platform several yards away. Some of them scoffed at her statement – he indeed was incapacitated. The Tholian remained silent, but approached Kym.

_"I need to disconnect from you now. You are in danger."_ He said to her. As he approached closer, the security team raised their weapons to him.

"NO!" Kym practically screamed at the security guards. "He's trying to help!" She turned her gaze to the Tholian, who was obviously worried.

_"Why are you doing this?"_ Kym asked. _"You implicated yourself. Why?"_

_"I knew that if I led you to me, I could lead you to him. That's what happened here. My job is finished."_ The Tholian said. _"I cannot stand by and watch the Typhon Pact eliminate innocent people."_

He was telling the truth. Why was he telling the truth about the same story that the Romulan lied about? Something didn't add up.

The security team stood in confusion, dropping their weapons. The Tholian reached out for Kym, his hand completely covered by his biosuit. His covered claw touched Kym's face and she could feel the heat through the suit. She heard a security team reach the Romulan and she could hear them talking to each other. She felt a warmth come over he body, a bright flash come over her vision, and she suddenly dropped to her knees on the floor. The Tholian withdrew his hand.

The Tholian stood quietly as Vaughn helped Kym up. Kym looked at him in his big, triangle eyes. The security team approached the Tholian and took him for questioning.

Kym said nothing to the Tholian. She wasn't really sure what she could say. Or if he would even understand her.

"Commander Rzepka, you require medical attention." The head security guard said. "We will need a statement from you on what happened here as well. I am assuming that you are under direct orders from Starfleet Intelligence." He looked down at the Romulan. "What is this, anyway?"

"He is – was – a murderer. I didn't expect him to... react... to a stun shot." Kym said. The pain in her shoulder was blinding and the lump on the back of her head where she hit the wall was growing. She started feeling light headed. She was still partially in disbelief over what had just happened. The Security guard approached her and picked up her weapon to check the setting. The security officer glanced at the display history. Last programmed shot fired: stun.

He looked back up at Commander Vaughn. "And what are you doing here?"

"I came looking for Commander Rzepka. I didn't want her having all the fun without me." Vaughn told the Lieutenant. He reached up to tap his comm badge.

"Vaughn to Defiant." he said, still looking down at the Romulan.

"You brought the Defiant?!" Kym hissed. Vaughn smiled and nodded. The back of her head started to throb.

_"Defiant here, go ahead"_ Ensign Tenmei responded.

"I've got her. Send down a medical team and Admiral Addison to my coordinates." Vaughn turned to look at Commander Rzepka. "Didn't want them to miss out, either."

Kym could feel herself feeling very faint. She held her right elbow with her left hand, trying to stabilize her burnt shoulder. She wasn't bleeding too much, but she thought she could see the bone through the injury. The pain was agonizing. She backed up and sat herself on top of a large transformer casing. Vaughn stayed near her, determined not to lose her again or let her out of his sight. The security team began their investigation of the Romulan remains.

"Why did you come alone? You could have been killed." Commander Rzepka said to the century old commander.

"Same reason you came alone. I didn't want to get caught." Vaughn said. His voice was quiet as he spoke to her. He understood her more than she thought he did. Perhaps they could learn something from one another after all.

Kym saw the three Defiant away team transport signals in the small space to her left - Admiral Addison, Dr. Bashir, and a Security officer.

Julian was the first to reach Commander Rzepka, seeing her injury.

"My god, what happened here?" he said, reaching into his medkit for a medical tricorder.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." Kym said back, smiling, in spite of her pain and the twisting feeling developing in her stomach. She thought it would be in poor taste to throw up on the doctor. Her smile faded when she saw her commanding officer. Addison looked at the Romulan and shook her head.

"I was hoping it wouldn't come to this," she said. "Commander, are you alright?" Admiral Addison was dressed in her standard black intelligence uniform, as Commander Rzepka was. Rzepka nodded.

"I am in one piece, sir," she said, glancing down at the arm that Julian was examining. "I didn't expect that, though." She nodded toward the Romulan.

"The good news is that your skull is in one piece. The bad news is you have a concussion and a severe disruptor burn here. We need to get you back to sick bay." Julian said, then turned to Vaughn. "Are you alright, sir?"

"I'm fine." Vaughn said gruffly.

"Commander Rzepka," the head security guard said suddenly. "The Embassy Security Office is requesting to confiscate your weapon. Do you have any objection to this?" Kym shook her head.

"No. I'm not attached to it. Feel free." She said, handing the rifle over to the officer and noticing Julian looking up from his tricorder.

"Do you need anything else from her before I take her for treatment?" He said to the security guard. The guard thought for a moment.

"Just her formal statement. One from Commander Vaughn as well." He said. "Admiral, if you don't mind, will you collect those statements?" He said looking at Admiral Addison, who nodded.

"Of course. I will be on the Defiant for the next 24 hours, then on Deep Space Nine for two or three more days. Please feel free to contact me at any time." Addison said, turning to Commander Rzepka. "Good work here. Let's get you home."


	16. Chapter 15

Commander Rzepka sat quietly by herself in the mess hall on the _Defiant_. It had been quite some time since she had been there. Her coffee cup was nearly empty as she relished in the silence. It was rare, especially lately, where she had a real quiet moment. Her shoulder was sore and her mind was full. Although Julian fixed her shoulder like new, he couldn't fix the damage to her conscience. _I killed someone._ It kept eating at her and eating at her. The blood of someone else was on her hands. She knew if she didn't kill the Romulan that he would have killed her, Vaughn, and the speaker of the assembly. He had already tried to kill her once. All of those other operatives that he killed... he was a criminal. But did he deserve to die?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the door sliding open. Commander Vaughn entered the mess hall rubbing his eyes. It was 0500 hours and the crew was rising for their next shift.

"Good morning, Commander." he said to Kym as he ambled to a replicator.

"Morning." Kym said back, not looking up. Vaughn returned with his coffee and doughnut.

"Anyone sitting here?" he asked her. Kym shook her head as he sat. She detected a sense of sympathy from him, a sense of understanding. Vaughn took a sip of coffee and looked at Kym. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"You know, I've never understood that statement." Kym said dryly. She wasn't up for conversation, but felt herself being forced into one.

"It's just an expression. Meaning what are you thinking about." Vaughn explained. Kym knew what he meant by it, but had no idea what pennies had to do with thinking.

"Pink clouds." Kym said, still staring into her coffee. Vaughn nodded. He knew what it was like to be homesick. He paused to take another sip of coffee.

"When was the last time you were home?" he said softly, taking a bite of his doughnut.

"Not since... not since the war ended." Kym said. "I'm almost afraid to go back." She knew that Betazed wasn't the same after the Dominion invasion several years ago.

"How about your mom? Is she doing okay? When was the last time you talked to her?" he continued.

"Oh, sure. She's fine. I spoke to her... " Kym frowned and looked up at Vaughn. "… right before I went to Cestus III." She looked back down at her coffee and Vaughn knew immediately what she was really thinking about.

"I remember when I first killed someone." he said, sipping his coffee and leaning back in his chair. Kym looked up at her and furrowed her eyebrows, giving him a sideways glance. "You want to hear about it?" he said. She nodded.

"It was on Rhodnock. I was working at shipbuilding yard when we were attacked by a group of Klingons. One of them came into our lab. My commanding officer and I were the only ones with weapons. I was the only one with a clear shot, so I made a snap decision. I thought my phaser was set on stun. It was set on kill. He was dead within one second." He said. "I never intended to kill him. Never." He looked Kym directly in her deep black eyes. "I felt guilty for months until I realized something."

"What did you realize?" Kym said, her mood unchanged.

"I realized," he said. "That if I hadn't killed him, he would have killed me, my CO, and the crewman with me. And probably a lot of other people." He put his cup down, wrapped his hands around it, and looked her deep in the eye again. "Kym, once you realize that if you hadn't killed him, even if you didn't want to, he would have killed you, me, and that speaker, you'll feel better."

Kym looked at him and sensed the same thing she was feeling. He missed his family. He constantly missed his family. She looked back down at her coffee again. She wasn't sure what to say. They sat in silence for a few minutes practically ignoring each other.

"I think I'll head home for a few days after we get back. I have a feeling I have some administrative leave coming up. I need to get out of here for a little while." Kym said, breaking up the silence. "Mom will be surprised to see me."

"I'll tell you what. If you don't get put on admin leave, I'll get Dr. Bashir to put you on medical leave with a therapeutic trip home. He owes me a favor anyway. I know that you've been under a lot of stress lately. You need the time off." Vaughn concluded. Kym smiled, feeling the tears welling up in her eyes. She pushed them back and swallowed hard.

"Thank you." was all she said.

* * *

After an exceptionally long debrief meeting with Captain Kira, Admiral Addison, Lieutenant Ro, Commander Vaughn, and several other SI operatives, Kym finally returned to her quarters on Deep Space Nine. She unzipped her overcoat and flopped down on her sofa. She had not been put on administrative leave pending an investigation, but she knew that Commander Vaughn planned to fulfill his promise. She knew she should get to packing, but she was so tired.

She got up and meandered into the bedroom, stripping out of her uniform. She let her clothes fall to the floor and she changed into her soft fleece nightgown. Her mother had given her the nightgown when she left for deep Space Nine over seven years ago. She didn't realize how long it had been.

Kym lay her heavy head down on her pillow. Her entire body ached - her shoulder especially - and she knew she would fall asleep very soon.

"Computer, dim lights." she said as she closed her eyes.

Within a few seconds, her eyes flew open. She sensed someone in the room with her.

She sat up quickly. There, in the corner of her bedroom, she saw a woman sitting in a chair. She was dressed in all black leather and her long blonde hair fell straight past her shoulders She sat cross-legged and had her hands folded in her lap. She touched the small bedside panel to illuminate a nightlight.

"Admiral?" she said into the darkness. "How did you get in here?"

"I'm sorry that I disturbed you." Admiral Addison said softly. She learned foreword into the light. "I have a proposition for you."

"Okay." Kym said, suddenly very confused. Addison seemed calm and satisfied with the situation. She seemed almost happy.

"Your work on the Assassination Ring was exemplary. I knew if anyone could crack the case, it would be you. I couldn't have asked for a better test of loyalty to Starfleet or the Federation. Your passion for disarming the Typhon Pact is why we gave you the antidote," she said quietly.

"We?" Kym said nervously. Her palms started to get clammy and her heart started pounding. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Commander," Addison continued. "Section 31 needs your help.."

"Wait. Wait a minute. You want me to join Section 31?" Kym said in disbelief. She was surprised that Section 31 wanted her, she was more surprised that Admiral Addison was an agent with them.

"We have had our eye on you since you entered the training class a year ago. Your loyalty to the Federation is far greater than most operatives. Your psionic abilities would bring great insight to our operation. Your knowledge of military and inter-spatial operations will be helpful. This last test proved all of that to my superiors. I knew it would." Addison said, keeping her voice low.

"Test? What do you mean test?" Kym's voice started sounding annoyed and it was hard for her to restrain herself. She kept reminding herself that she was talking to her commanding officer, not a Section 31 agent. She put her disdain aside and tried to listen to what the Admiral had to say.

"We knew you were a target in the ring. We couldn't let you die and lose our chance on having your join our operation. We kept an eye out for you during the days after to the attack. We were ready for any possible scenario." Addison said.

"How many operatives were aboard the station?!" Kym said.

"Thirty. I can't tell you who they were, but we had enough that we had eyes on you at all times." Addison said.

"Did you know about the Romulan?" Kym said getting annoyed. She felt her heart start to calm down a bit as they talked.

"Yes. We knew about all of it."

Kym leaned back on her hands on the bed. Her phaser dropped onto the bed beside her. She let her mind wander for several minutes before she spoke again.

"I could lose my commission. YOU could lose your commission. I made an oath to Starfleet and so did you! I can't just abandon them. I can't leave now." Kym said. The truth was that she had considered resigning from Starfleet several months ago before her stem cell transplant. Now that she had a renewed health, she was looking forward to staying with the fleet and working with military operations. She loved her work.

"We wouldn't ask you to leave Starfleet. We have several members that are still Starfleet officers. And you won't lose your commission. Not if I have anything to say about it. Section 31 will take care to ensure that as an intelligence operative, you will stay on active duty and will be concealed as much as possible. If your mission is exposed, then 31 will step in and clean up the mess. They will take care of you." Addison said. "Do you trust me on that?"

Kym had known Addison for several years. She was second officer aboard the Titan when Kym was stationed there. She knew that Addison was a woman of her word and would not attempt to lead anyone astray. She could also sense that Addison was telling the truth.

"I do trust you." was all Kym could muster out. She was in such shock that she couldn't think of anything else to say.

"I expected you would need some time to think about our proposition. We wouldn't ask you to leave Starfleet. We would simply be engaging you for help when we need your expertise. I've already signed your leave orders and they will be waiting for you in the morning. Take your time on Betazed. Have a restful trip. We will see you when you return." With that statement, Addison transported out of Kym's room, leaving her alone.

Kym sat on the edge of her bed for several minutes, thinking. After what seemed like forever, she got up from her position and retrieved her duffel bag from the closet. As she folded and placed her clothes in the bag, she couldn't help but shake her head. She had spent so many years working for the Federation… why? Why was she here in the first place? Did she really love working in Starfleet or was she here because her mother once initially didn't want her to go? Intelligence work was her new passion and she was good at it – but something was missing. She knew that Starfleet and the Federation wasn't doing too much to stop the Typhon Pact because they couldn't – regulations prevented them. But, in Section 31, there are no regulations. No accountability. Only getting the job done.

_The best chance I have to really disarming the Typhon Pact is joining Section 31._ She thought to herself. _Which is completely crazy._

She kept packing. It was all she could do to keep herself from obsessing over Admiral Addison's offer. By 0300 hours, she was completely exhausted and finally fell asleep on her sofa, but not before setting the alarm for a painful 0700.

* * *

Commander Rzepka stood quietly at the airlock. She held in her hand a padd containing her medical orders and her shore leave terms. Her shoulder still ached with the weight of her bag, so she let it slide off her shoulder and rest on the floor. She leaned her back against the bulkhead and waited. Four other passengers were waiting for the transport as well. She couldn't help but wonder where they were all going. One was a Ferengi male with a very nervous looking Ferengi youngster. It had been a while since she'd seen more than two or three Ferengi aboard the station.

She glanced at the padd again. _"Medical shore leave for fourteen working days. Officer is to report back to Space Station Deep Space Nine for medical evaluation at that time."_ Today's date was listed at the top of the order. Two weeks away from the chaos of the station. It seemed glorious and at the same time she was dreading it.

Although, home cooked meals and sleeping in every day seemed very enticing.

She thought about the meditation that she needed to catch up on. And the mud baths. She missed mud baths.

Her mud bath daydream was interrupted by Captain Kira's approach.

"Commander?" Kira said as she drew closer. Kym turned her head to face the Captain.

"Good morning!" Kym said. "How is everything going today?"

"Just fine. I came down to say goodbye. I'll be on Bajor for a month by the time you get back, so it will be a while before we see each other again." She explained. "I really hope you have a good vacation."

"Thank you. I do too. I have a lot of catching up to do with my family. It's been a few years." Kym confessed. Kira nodded.

_"Ops to Captain Kira. Please report to your office, you have visitors."_ Kira's comm badge suddenly said. Kira sighed.

"I'll be right there." She said into her badge. "The Vedek is on the station. He demands a tour every time he is here." She held her arms open for a hug, which Kym graciously accepted.

Kym had decided several years ago that Kira was possibly the best hugger she'd ever known. Her embrace was tight and the love streaming through her arms was abundant. She was always a genuine hugger. Kira let go of Kym and held her arms at length. "Have a great trip," she said with a smile.

"I will." Kym said, smiling back. Kira turned and left, leaving Kym back in her solitude with the growing crowd of passengers. She desperately needed a cup of coffee. Her shoulder still ached, now her back was aching.

_"Transport vessel departing for Earth now boarding."_ the electronic voice of the computer filled Kym's ears with sadness and dread. She had one more mission before she went home. Jonathan Meadows' funeral was scheduled for the day she arrived on Earth. She was looking forward to seeing the Golden Gate Bridge again. And Paris. She had more than enough reports to finish and books to read during the three day trip to Earth aboard the USS Yeager. She hoped the reading would distract her from what was surely to be a very hard few days ahead.


	17. Chapter 16

The fragrance of roses and lilies filled Commander Rzepka's nose. The audience was full of weeping eyes and sniffling noses. More than half of the sad faces belonged to Starfleet officers, all dressed in their shiny white and blue dress uniforms.

A few surreal moments passed before Kym realized that she also was standing straight-backed in her white fleet officer's dress uniform with weeping eyes and a sniffling nose. The assembly hall at Starfleet Command in San Fransisco was nearly packed to the brim - 200 people total - as the memorial service was ending. Pall bearers carried a shiny black casket down the aisle, the United Federation of Planets flag draped carefully over the top. Kym stood with three of her counterparts from the same intelligence training class. They all seemed as disappointed and saddened as she.

Admiral T'Eka, the Vulcan commanding officer of the Starfleet Quartermaster Service, approached Kym and held out his hand, motioning for her to proceed down the aisle in the recession.

"You may follow directly behind the family, Commander." he quietly said. Kym nodded and followed, directly behind Jonathan's commanding officer. Soon they were outside in the garden, performing a small and private ceremony. As the ceremony ended, Kym stood still, then approached the casket.

"Jonathan, I'll never forget what you did for me," she said quietly as she placed her hand on the smooth, cold titanium of the casket. The black surface of the casket reflected the large, fluffy clouds in the sky and the orange setting sun. Behind her, Kym could hear Jonathan's mother talking to someone. "Please know that I will continue to defend Starfleet. I won't give up. I will always fight for you."

"He would be glad to hear that." A soft voice appeared from behind her.

Kym turned around quickly. She had not noticed Admiral Addison approaching her from behind.

"Admiral. I apologize, I didn't know you were there." Kym said, turning back to the casket one more time. Warm tears welled up in her eyes as she thought about the dear friend that she would never see again. "It's a bit hard for me to say goodbye to this one, sir."

"I know. I'm sorry that this had to happen. I know Meadows was a good man. You both worked well together." Addison said, pausing for a moment, noticing Kym's sadness. Kym 's heart beat faster as she sensed a strong feeling of guilt from Addison. Something more was there. Was she feeling... shame? What is she ashamed about? Kym wondered. _Why is she feeling... responsible... for what happened? _

"Would you like to join me for dinner this evening, Commander?" Addison continued.

Kym had not noticed that the brilliant yellow sun had started to set beyond the horizon. It must have been close to 0600, about the time she told the Chief that she would meet the O'Brien family at their home for dinner. Kym only wanted to be away from the strange and hostile feelings she was sensing from the Admiral.

"I'm sorry, sir. I'm already engaged in dinner plans. I can do coffee tomorrow morning, though." Kym said. Addison nodded.

"Meet me in my office in the morning - 0900. There are a few things that I would like to discuss with you before you leave for Betazed." Addison said, smiling and turning to walk away. Kym knew what she wanted to talk about. Section 31. Addison turned and left, Kym turned back to her friend's casket, shaking off the strange feelings she got from the admiral. White roses draped the end of the rounded casket, already fainting from lack of water. The lump in her throat got bigger as another tear fell, splashing on the casket's shiny surface, eventually streaming down the curved side and rolling into the grass. She stood silence, suffocating in her thoughts. I need to do something more, she thought. I need to stop things like this from happening again. I have to.

Kym retreated to downtown Paris after dinner, where she slept at the Command's Officers Quarters. Sleeping on a ship for four days left her a bit lightheaded. She wasn't used to sleeping while flying at Warp 5.

The following morning, as the sun rose over the brilliant blue sky, Kym rose and dressed in her uniform. After grabbing a quick cup of coffee from the replicator, she made her way out into the command complex.

Large white buildings surrounded her, in the distance stood the Eiffel Tower. White fluffy clouds framed a brilliant blue sky and the sun's rays peeked around several smaller clouds. Another perfect day. The temperature was cool for May, but she knew it would be very warm closer to the afternoon. She walked along the sidewalk, passing several other officers dressed in a variety of colored uniforms. Off in the distance, she noticed a class of Intelligence recruits in a physical fitness class running laps around the fitness field. She grinned to herself as she watched for a moment, remembering all the time she spent on that field. Training generally lasts a year or more, depending on the field of study. For several months, at that very place, she spent nearly every waking moment with Jonathan Meadows and had gotten to know him better than anyone else. She was really going to miss him.

Pain throbbed behind her right knee as she walked. She hadn't experienced pain for several days, so she had expected for today to be a tough one. She slowed her pace and continued to walk down the sidewalk to the Command Center, where Admiral Addison's office was located.

Slowly up the stairs and into the marbled and steel framed building, she was soon standing at the Admiral's door on the first floor. She pressed the chime.

"Come in!" Addison said from the other side.

Kym stepped through the doors, which hissed open to accommodate her. The admiral's office was lined with ground-level one-way mirrored windows, which allowed just enough sunlight to stream in. Two brown leather chairs sat silently in front of the dark oak desk, behind which sat the admiral. She looked up and smiled.

"Commander Rzepka, please, come in." the admiral said. "Coffee?" she said, getting up from her own brown leather chair.

"Please, just cream." Kym said as she walked slowly to the chair, sitting down gently. Not too much pain was in her leg now, and she hoped that it stayed away.

Within a few more seconds, the admiral returned from the replicator with two cups in her hand. She handed one cup to the commander and sat back down behind the desk.

"I won't keep you long, I know you have a shuttle to catch in a few hours. I just wanted to talk to you about what we talked about back on DS9." Admiral Addison said. "Have you reached a decision?"

Kym took a deep breath and let it out slowly, taking a small sip of coffee from her cup. She shifted her gaze up to the admiral.

"I have reached a decision." Kym said.

"I'm sure you can understand the urgency of solidifying that decision." The Admiral said. "There is much to begin work on."

"I accept your offer. Under one condition." Kym started, hardly believing the words that were coming out of her mouth. "I keep my commission. Nothing changes."

"Done." Addison said, smiling. She leaned back in her chair, satisfied.

* * *

"This was the fastest week of my life." Ama Rzepka said to her daughter as they stood at the landing pad, waiting for the shuttle to arrive.

"I know, Mom. I know." Kym said. She had a splendid week home with her mom, but it was time to get back to work. Her bag hung loosely over her shoulder, which had completely healed. Kym felt rejuvenated and relaxed, something she hadn't felt in a long time. She was eager to jump back into the swing of things and be normal again.

"I want you to call me when you get there, sweetie. And I'll be scheduling a visit to the station when winter break comes up." Ama said. "It's about time I get out to see you."

"I agree. I've only been there how many years?" Kym said, smiling. She had finally convinced her mother that traveling through the Alpha Quadrant by runabout was safe. Her mother had doubts.

"I know, I know. I look forward to meeting your friends!" Ama said. Kym thought about Jonathan Meadows. His plans to come visit would have fallen right around the time she was getting back to the station. She couldn't help but become very said. Her mother put her hand on her shoulder.

"I understand, honey. I didn't mean to upset you." she said. "Time will heal your heart, sweetie." Kym forced a smile.

"I know. It's just... we were close."

Ama just nodded. Kym knew she didn't have to explain. Before the conversation could continue, a Starfleet runabout eased out of the sky and down onto the landing pad. The hatch opened as four Starfleet cadets exited the craft.

"Well..." Kym said. "It's about that time."

Ama took her daughter into her arms in a long embrace. They were connected - mentally, physically, emotionally. Everything that Kym felt, her mother felt. It was a connection that Kym could never share with anyone else. It was comforting. It was perfect.

"I love you, Kymmie." she said. "Please be careful."

"I love you too, Mom. And I will. I'm always careful.' Kym replied. She picked up her bag turned to the runabout. Before she got on the craft, she turned to her mother, who was still standing in the visitor's bay. Kym waved, Ama waved back. Kym retreated inside the runabout.

"Good morning, Commander. How are you today?" The pilot said to Kym.

"Doing well, Lieutenant. How long until our rendezvous?" Kym asked. She was thinking about catching some sleep before they transferred to the _Yeager_.

"After take off, we will rendezvous with _Aventine_ in four hours, which will then escort you back to Deep Space Nine, sir." the pilot said.

"_Aventine_?!" Kym said, surprised.

"Yes, sir. The _USS Yeager_ was called on a mission. I hope the substitution is acceptable for you." the lieutenant said.

"Of course it is alright, Lieutenant." Kym said, secretly doing jumping jacks inside her head. She couldn't wait to see Ezri. Couldn't wait.

She turned to the aft compartment and settled onto a lounge hammock. she actually loved sleeping on a runabout - the ship literally could rock her to sleep. She hadn't been getting much sleep over her time on Betazed, she'd been spending most of her time taking in the fresh air and staying up talking with her mom, not to mention trying to recover from extreme jet lag. They both had many late nights this past week.

Kym was asleep before the runabout took off. She slept so soundly, she only opened her eyes when she felt the runabout shudder as it was docking. She stood out of the hammock and stretched.

"_Tertian_, you're clear for dock. Welcome back." Kym heard from the pilot's station. _Was that Ezri's voice? No, it couldn't be._ Kym thought to herself. She gathered her things and returned to the cabin.

"Smooth trip, Lieutenant, thank you." she said.

"Did you catch a few winks, sir?" the pilot asked.

"I did. Several, actually." Kym replied. "Computer, what is the time?"

"The time is 1900 hours." Kym shook her head. She'd lost almost an entire day and suddenly remembered why she didn't enjoy traveling.

The runabout finally came to a rest on a landing pad, Kym's stomach did flips. as the doors slowly opened, Kym saw three security officers and one command officer.

The command officer stood at least two inches shorter than all of the security officers. Her pixie haircut framed her round face, dark hair shining in the harsh fluorescent light. Green eyes glimmered with alertness. Her face was framed with leopard-like spots, trailing down the sides of her face and down each side of her neck, eventually disappearing into her red collared uniform. She had a smile that could light up the darkest of corners and Kym could sense her bursting excitement as the doors to the shuttle closed slowly.


	18. Chapter 17

Kym nearly didn't recognize her best friend.

Resisting the urge to hug her, Kym stood at attention in front of the Captain.

"Commander Kymberli Rzepka requesting permission to board, Captain." She fought the urge to grin, even though Ezri had already plastered a huge smile on her face.

"Of course permission granted!" Ezri said, quickly approaching Kym and hugging her tight. The women were nearly the same height and Kym always felt in good company when she was around. It made her not feel so small.

"It's such a nice surprise to see you!" Kym finally squealed. "How have you been?"

"I'm great! Oh, we have so much to catch up on. First, though, let's get your bags to your quarters, then let's go to dinner." Ezri excitedly said, motioning to one of the security guards to pick up Kym's bag.

"Security detail really necessary? I can carry my own bags." Kym said.

"I have orders from Starfleet that you're to be guarded en route. You didn't know about that?" Ezri said as they started walking with the security escorts.

"I had no idea." Kym said, wondering who gave the order for security. Must have been Addison.

"Well, you're a high profile person now. I would think the guards will continue for at least a few more days." Ezri said. "Besides, it eases my mind that I can get you back to the station safely. I don't want you to miss your party." she clasped her hands behind her back as she walked.

"Party?" Kym said.

"Oh," Ezri's face started to turn red. "Your birthday party. Don't tell Kira I told you. And act surprised, okay?" Kym laughed out loud. They had reached her quarters and Ezri entered the code to open the door. One security guard entered first, then gave the signal for the all clear. The other guard entered and placed Kym's bag on a glass coffee table.

"Ready for dinner or do you want to change?" Ezri asked. "I don't want to rush you, but I'm starving."

Kym laughed again. "I can be ready now. I don't want you to starve."

Ezri's face light up with excitement. "The officer's club isn't crowded right now, either. We can go there." They started walking down the brightly lit corridor toward the officer's club. Kym had nearly forgotten how inviting a starship's corridors were. Defiant was usually dimly lit, ready for battle or cloaked. Not ever "inviting."

Soon the women found themselves dining in the officer's club over wine and laughter. They chatted about everything their hearts led to chat about. Relationships, their parents, their jobs...

Until Ezri brought up the last assignment.

"I read your last report." she suddenly brought up. The smile across Kym's face faded.

"I was hoping you wouldn't bring that up. I'm trying to forget it even happened." Kym admitted. She took another sip of her wine, feeling slightly intoxicated. She thought to herself that if there was a good time to talk about it, it was then.

"I thought you did a good job. I don't know that I would have been able to narrow the search as well as you did. And come through it alive. It sounded like quite the adventure," Ezri said, leaning back in her chair while taking a sip of her wine. Their plates were empty on the glass-topped table in front of them.

"No, Ez. I didn't do a good job. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. The writing was on the wall and I didn't see it. I nearly shot the wrong person." Kym admitted. "My tactic was flawed by personal conflict. I acted on impulse. It was completely stupid." It was true. After Jonathan's death, Kym took on a personal vendetta against someone - anyone - that could be held responsible. She missed a host of key evidence leading to the correct person.

"Don't be so hard on yourself. Sometimes it's ok to cash in on luck to get something done." Ezri said. "I don't think I would be so reserved while investigating a situation like that."

Kym looked at her friend. She knew that Ezri was fishing for information, that her curiosity was trying to get the best of her. Given the circumstance with Section 31 and her intoxication, Kym decided to drop the subject.

"Thank you." she said.

"Tell me," Ezri said, taking the hint that Kym wanted to change the subject. "How is Julian?"

Kym looked at Ezri for a minute, trying to get a sense of what she was feeling. Concern, loss, loneliness.

"He's ok," Kym said. "He's doing ok. Although if I were you, I would take it easy with him while you're on the station. He's just not ready to confront what happened yet."

"What do you mean?" Ezri asked.

"He feels that all of this between you has been his fault. He feels like he drove you away. I know that isn't the case, but obviously he can't help what he feels. He misses you. A lot. And when you leave again, you'll be taking a little piece of hope away from him that he thinks he can fix everything. This is the one thing he can't control and he hates that." Kym said.

Ezri sat quietly for a moment, thinking about what Kym said. The several months that had passed since Ezri saw Julian put everything into perspective for Ezri. She was happy without him. She was happy exploring the stars. She loved her work.

Kym shifted her weight off her left hip, leaned back in her chair, and held the stem of her wine glass. It was nearly empty.

"He's not the only one who misses you, you know." Kym said quietly. She sensed a sudden feeling of guilt from Ezri, followed by a feeling of justification and defense.

"I needed a new life, Kym. I needed something better then Jadzia's leftovers." she curtly said, letting her curt attitude too close to the surface. Kym completely understood, but felt put off. Kym didn't know Jadzia very well, if at all, and truly valued Ezri's friendship for Ezri, not for Jadzia.

Kym peered into her glass. She let her head bob into a heavy nod.

"I know." She took the last sip of wine and placed the glass gently back on the glass topped table. Ezri also understood Kym's melancholy and softened her face a bit.

"I'm only a transmission away. And you know I don't sleep around here." Ezri said with a small giggle, trying to cut the tension. Kym grinned too.

"I know that. It's just not the same." Kym, grinning and wrinkling her nose while pouring another glass of wine. "Besides. We can't demolish an entire bottle of wine over subspace."

Ezri laughed out loud and held out her glass. "I'll drink to that!" she said as Kym refilled her glass with the last drops of red wine.

Kym pondered a few things while she and Ezri continued their chatter. Her jet lag was working in her favor, keeping her awake to the small hours of the night and able to keep up with Ezri's endless stream of energy. Where did she find all of that energy, anyway?

Then she thought about Agent Meadows again. She would be soon be back to reality, facing challenges of her work and not having anyone to call and load it off onto. He wouldn't be transferring. She wouldn't be showing him around the station, teaching him when to catch the wormhole at it's peak and seeing his first taste of Hasperat. All of those missed opportunities - the opportunities that would break up her mundane, boring, mediocre state of living aboard the station.

But now, with the prospect of Section 31 proving relief from that mediocrity, perhaps her life was about to become a bit more interesting.

Section 31. She hadn't even thought about that in the past week. Part of her still felt like she was doing the right thing, but part felt like she was making a terrible mistake.

"Kym?" Ezri broke through Kym's daydream. "You ok?"

Kym smiled the kind of smile that she only used when she was trying to cover something up. It was fake and Ezri knew it. One of the most liked traits about Ezri was her ability to really understand people. Kym gravitated toward people with natural empathy. She could relate to Ezri on a different level.

"I have a lot on my mind." Kym confessed. "I'm going to have a stack of work on my desk when I get back and I'm not particularly looking forward to it." Ezri placed her elbows on the table, grasping her wine glass and peering deep into Kym's ebony eyes.

"Sounds like the new commission isn't going as expected?" she suggested. Kym shrugged. She was right. The assignment was far from expected. However, Kym didn't want to talk about it for fear that she would leak something classified in her wine-induced intoxication.

"I'll manage." Kym said quickly. "So what was this about a birthday?"

The women continued to talk until well into the early hours of the morning before retreating to their quarters for a few hours of sleep. Ezri needed to be on duty the next afternoon, but Kym, being so jet-lagged, couldn't sleep at all. After several hours of tossing and turning in her bed, she got up and retrieved a cup of Tarkalean Tea from the replicator. The room was filled with ambient blue and green lighting - a very inviting atmosphere. Outside of the bedroom, the living room housed a black leather sofa and a glass coffee table, a desk with a console, and a desk chair. The massive window hovered and curved gently from floor to ceiling. Kym walked to the window in her bare feet and purple nightgown, clutching the glass mug of steaming tea in her hands. The stars whizzed by as the _Aventine_ silently moved through space at warp speed. Warp 6, she guessed. She wasn't sure. It had been so long since she'd been on a starship.

Gray carpet beneath her feet scratched at her arches. _It's too bad Starfleet can't invest in more luxurious carpet,_ she thought. She breathed deep through her nose and let the breath out slowly, lifting her gaze toward the top of the window. Memorized by specks of light whizzing by, she got an idea.

Yes. She thought. Yes, that's it. The reason why there were no files... it's because they didn't exist. But why?

Kym continued to stare out of the window, letting her imagination run wild, wishing that she had a secure line here on _Aventine_. All of her research was still on DS9, so she couldn't even research to prove her theory.

She clung to the theory that all of the murdered operatives weren't random. They could have been members of Section 31. Meaning that the Romulan must have had knowledge of the organization, which was surprising.

Unless the Romulan was also an operative. Or a spy. Matek was his name, Kym later learned. He had no family and no affiliation with Starfleet. Judging from the reports and the research, Kym couldn't figure out if he was affiliated with the Typhon Pact, but that part seemed obvious.

Her mind wandered for another few minutes before she got up and paced the dimly lit gray room. She wasn't tired at all, even though it was well past 2 a.m. Instead of wasting time in her quarters, she decided to take in some of the beauty that _Avenitne_ had to offer. She quickly dressed in her uniform.

Stepping out into the corridor, she met the two guards at the door.

"Let's take a walk, gentlemen." they both nodded and fell silently into place behind her as she walked slowly to the turbo lift. Her left knee ached with exhaustion and she knew she would be paying for this lack of sleep later.

Inside the turbolift, she waited for her security detail to enter before she commanded to the computer: "Observation Deck."

Kym immediately sensed a true excitement from the younger guard - an Ensign, and she grinned.

"I know. It's one of my favorite places on this ship." she said, turning to him. She felt a sense of panic come over him. She let a small giggle escape through her nose. She wasn't used to people around her not knowing that she was a telepath. If this guard had been a little more seasoned, he would have researched his subject a little more prior to the assignment.

"At ease, Ensign. And think happy thoughts." Kym added. "Perhaps you should research your next assignment a little more carefully."

Not a moment too soon, the turbolift stopped and opened to the huge, looming expanse that composed the observation deck. The entire room was surrounded by sloping windows, stretching up from the floor and meeting at a three-foot round bulkhead at the ceiling. Each window was divided by a graceful sloping gray pillar. The stars flew past, moving at speeds so fast that they only looked like streaks of light.

Ten sets of chairs and hi-top tables scattered through the middle of the gray and tan carpeted floor. The room was completely empty, vice Kym and her security guards.

Kym strolled to the furthest window, concentrating on the space outside of the ship. In the distance, nothing but blackness hung over the specks of flying light. The view was surreal. One could really get lost out there. In here.

Kym estimated that, by the speed the stars were flying by, they were traveling at high warp - probably close to warp 9, not warp 6 like she'd estimated earlier. _At this speed_, she thought, _we'll be at the station by tomorrow afternoon_.

She'd really be feeling the jet lag by then.

After a few moments at the window, she retreated to a chair. Her knee throbbed as she remembered that she'd left a full cup of tea in her quarters. _Drat_, she thought. _I wanted that tea._

She stared at the stars. Each one spoke to her in a voice that she couldn't understand. Each one had a story to tell. Yet they continued to zoom by, seemingly not to have a care in the world. The streaks of light were soothing to her overworked mind. Each one of them had a job to do, whether it be to give light or give life. Each one had a job.

_I wish I could be more like that. More purposeful_, she thought to herself. Truth was, she didn't enjoy Intelligence work. She missed engineering. She had always been a "down and dirty" kind of officer - hands on and in the middle of the fight. She missed the hustle and bustle of engineering. She even missed jumping out of bed in the middle of the night to answer a battlestations alert.

She missed feeling truly useful. She hoped that the decision to join Section 31 wasn't just something to help her feel... useful.

_All because of a stupid accident. Ironic,_ she thought. She'd always thought the situation was a bit ironic. _If the Defiant hadn't fired on the station, it's OWN station, I wouldn't be in this situation at all_, she thought. _My own colleagues crippled me_.

_There I go. Projecting my problems onto someone else. Blame spreading to people who don't deserve 's been three years, Kym. Don't you think it's time to move on?_

Kym sighed. The beauty of the observation deck wasn't helping her sort out her thoughts. It was complicating them. She stood out of the brown leather chair, this time pain radiating up to her left hip and down into the sole of her left foot. She hadn't been to physical therapy in nearly three weeks, no wonder her leg was on fire.

Hence, reminding her why she couldn't go back to engineering. at least, not anytime soon.

She and her security team made their way slowly back to her quarters. Kym walked with an obvious limp, reminding her of the night she was poisoned. The passion she had felt to find the killer was hot. She felt proud of herself and knew that her CO was proud of her. She was quickly becoming the best of the best in Starfleet Intelligence. That was something to be proud of, indeed.

There is a difference between loving what you do... and doing something you happen to be good at.

She breathed a sigh of relief as her leg calmed down while laying in her bed. She didn't have the energy to even change out of her uniform. She closed her eyes, letting herself drift away in to relaxation as she calmly fell asleep to the soothing hum of warp nacelles.


	19. Chapter 18

Kyms eyes flashed open when she heard the door chime. Jumping up, she nearly fell getting out of bed. Straightening up, she sensed Ezri on the other side of the door.

"Computer, time." she quickly said.

"The time is 11 hundred, 42 hours, fourteen seconds." the computer's monotone voice replied. _Shit_. she thought. _I've slept away the entire morning. _

She answered the door silently. Ezri was dressed in her uniform, having likely been on duty for several hours already. Kym motioned for her to come in, then retreated back into her quarters.

"Were you still sleeping?" Ezri asked.

"Yep. Damn jet lag gets me every time. And I wonder why I don't go home often." Kym said, frantically looking for her comm badge and her third pip. Both were lying on the bed, not far from where she had slept for the past four hours.

"We're docking in thirty minutes. I was wondering if I could walk with you to the airlock. I bet we have a welcoming party waiting for us there." Ezri said. Kym started to calm down a bit when she realized that she was almost home. She put a few padds back in her bag and closed the lid. She looked around for anything that she might have forgotten, thinking that her trip back was way faster than her trip out. She sensed Ezri's lighthearted excitement.

"You can slow down a bit. We have time for coffee before we debark..." Ezri said. "Why didn't you sent an alarm?" Although Ezri was only half-joking, Kym felt a slight anger toward what her best friend had said. She shot Ezri a dirty look, then eased off a bit.

"I haven't been sleeping well. At all. I just didn't think about it, I guess." Kym confessed, combing her hair while looking in the mirror. She smoothed out her tunic in the mirror. Sensing Ezri's concern, she shook off the thought and smiled. "I've just had a lot going on lately, that's all."

"Come on, let's get some caffeine in you before we get there," Ezri suggested, leading the way to the officer's club.

Before long, Kym stood at the airlock, waiting to disembark. Ezri stood with her, grinning from ear to ear. She was excited to be back on the Station again. Kym suddenly didn't want to be back on the Station again. She didn't want to go back to work. She didn't want to deal with the real world, where she was in constant danger. She didn't want to think about the challenges that were ahead of her.

In fact, she wanted to be back on Betazed with the pink clouds and her slightly overprotective mother. She started to understand why her mother felt so overprotective. Starfleet was a dangerous place to be. She couldn't lie to herself and say that now she was safe in her bed at night.

"You ok?" Ezri said quietly. Kym slowly shook her head as the airlock opened and she glanced over at Ezri.

_I don't know that I'll ever be okay,_ she thought as the enormous crimson cogs rolled away, revealing the inside of the station.

* * *

From the upper level of the promenade, the people ambling by below seemed so small. They scurried by in waves, hustling into restaurants for dinner, into shops for leisurely shopping, into Quark's bar for after-dinner drinks. They all seemed to not have a care in the world. Purple, blue, and yellow flags waved gently in the breeze from the environmental system, giving a small break from the taupe and gray walls and floors. Yellow and white lights shone below the guard rail on which Kym rested her forearms, leaning slightly over to get a better look at the passersby.

"I've been calling you for the past 45 minutes." A voice appeared behind her before she sensed who it was.

Kym uncruled her left hand to reveal her shiny sliver and gold comm badge resting comfortably in her upturned palm. Captain Kira Nerys leaned her elbows over the rail next to Kym as Kym closed her hand back up, protecting the badge from falling into the crowd below.

"I just needed a few quiet moments." Kym said quietly. She glanced over at Kira's hands, which were clasped together. Her Starfleet uniform's cuffs were trimmed with red silk. Kym found a small bit of comfort in Kira's Starfleet status, as always. "I thought you were on Bajor," Kym added.

"I came back early. The Council postponed their meeting until next month." Kira admitted, gazing into the crowd several feet below.

A few minutes passed with both women watching the crowd silently together. Kira studied her own clasped hands, wondering what to say next. She knew why Kym was standing here, collecting her thoughts. She was here not too long ago, wondering how safe she really was aboard the station after her life also nearly ended there.

"It gets easier, you know." Kira said suddenly. No one had told _her _that when she needed to hear it. She was determined to get Kym the help she needed to get back on her feed and feel secure again.

"What part?" Kym said, finally looking Kira in the eye. Kira bit her lip, carefully choosing her words.

"The fear," Kira said, pausing. "And the trust."

Trust. The word rang loudly in Kym's ear. _Who can trust me now? I'm living nothing but a lie here. _

A lie. Or... lack of truth. Yes. YES that's IT! Lack of truth... that's how Section 31 covers themselves so well. Lack of truth.

The reason why none of the dead operatives had files of their current jobs was because they were working undercover. For Section 31. Just as she had thought about back on the _Aventine_.

Kym looked up suddenly at Kira with panic in her eyes.

"Nerys. I just thought of something I need to check into. I think I've made a terrible mistake." Kym said. "Can I catch up with you later?"

"Sure," Kira said, confused. "I'll be around. Just give me a call."

Kym turned and hurried off, leaving Kira standing alone and confused. She quickly returned her comm badge to it's place on her uniform and hurried into her office in the Vault.

"Computer," she said. "List every subspace transmission leaving Starfleet Headquarters in Paris, France to any Romulan receiver."

Several messages were sent from HQ to Romulan Embassies on several different planets. Many of them were to the Imperial order. However, Kym noticed several messages all heading to the same coordinates - a battleship.

The _T'met_.

Kym did a little more digging and discovered that T'Dan Olahu Matek was aboard the ship, serving as a security agent. Possibly with the Tal Shi'ar.

The hair on the back of Kym's neck stood on end. Matek was the man she had shot and killed nearly a month ago.


	20. Chapter 19

Kym's hands shook as she went back to the information about the transmissions originating from Starfleet Headquarters to the T'Met. Some of them were from one set of coordinates, some were from another. All of them were Level 5 Secure.

She couldn't access the coordinates because her security clearance wasn't high enough. However, she knew someone whose clearance _was _high enough.

"Rzepka to Commander Vaughn." she said, tapping her comm badge.

"Vaughn here. Commander, we're all waiting for you in the holosuite, where are you?" Vaughn's voice came back, sounding cheerful. The party. _My party_, she thought. She'd forgotten all about it. That must have been why Kira was calling for forty minutes.

"Commander, I require your immediate assistance in the Vault, sir." she said, ignoring the fact that she was missing her own birthday party.

"I'll be right there." he said.

Kym sat for a few minutes staring at the screen listing the coordinates. She recognized one as the Intelligence office at Starfleet Headquarters. The other she didn't recognize. _Oh God, I'm about to uncover an inside job,_ she thought. _I can't believe this..._ Her stomach turned in a knot and her palms felt clammy. Her heart fluttered in her chest and she thought it could jump right out of her throat at any moment.

Vaughn suddenly walked in, approaching Kym.

"You look like you're just seen a ghost. Are you alright?" Vaughn said, noting her pallor and suddenly becoming very worried.

"Sit down, Commander." Kym said. "I've got a heck of a story for you." She told him everything, from the missing data files on the killed operatives, Addison working for Section 31, the weird vibes she got from Addison at the funeral, to the message the Tholian gave her, to tracking the transmissions to the Romulan Vessel and the man she'd killed. Vaughn sat in disbelief through all of it, becoming more and more entranced by every word Kym said.

"I think the last pieces of the puzzle are here, in these coordinates. I can't track them because my security clearance isn't high enough." She slid the padd over to Vaughn across the table, who picked it up. "I think one is Starfleet Headquarters. I don't know where the other is." She sat back in her chair, trembling, afraid of vomiting all over the floor.

Vaughn quietly looked over the coordinates, then entered in his security clearance number, breaking the encryption code on the coordinates.

"You're right. One is Starfleet Intelligence Headquarters. The other is this address." Vaughn said quietly, sliding the padd back over to Kym.

_340 Rue de Palace_

_Paris, France_

Kym scanned a little farther down the page. She froze when she saw what her suspicion already confirmed.

_Herbert E. and Amanda G. Addison. _

Vaughn sat back in his chair. "This is impressive work, Commander, but what does it prove?"

Kym's legs were trembling as she stood. She scanned through the messages, scanning for the one before Jonathan's murder. She played it on the screen. The audio transcript described the killing in detail, and Addison's confirmation on all of it.

Vaughn's disbelief overcame him. He stood out of his chair, his own head spinning.

"Commander," he said, still keeping his voice low. "How did you find all of this?"

"The pieces just fell together. The only thing I don't have is a motive." Kym said, sitting back down. Vaughn still sat in disbelief, wondering what to think next.

"How did you know she was working for 31?" he asked. Kym looked at him in the eye and told a bold faced lie.

"She slipped up. She trusts me more than she should." Kym said. "I guarantee she gave the order for each of the murders, including mine."

_Tell him the whole truth, Kym..._

"I did something stupid, too." Kym added, looking Vaughn in the eye. "She offered for me to join the organization. She said that she needed my help in stopping the Typhon Pact. Given the conditions and the sting of the Typhon Pact nearly killing me... and my partner..."

"What did you say?" Vaughn said breathlessly, concern growing in his eyes.

"I accepted," she said, lowering her gaze to the floor. "I wish I hadn't."

Vaughn stood, trying to collect his thoughts.

"We will deal with that later. Right now, we need to speak with Internal Affairs." he said. "Computer, put a priority one, level 5 transmission through to Rear Admiral Lucas Trelantis."

Vaughn sat and waited for the Admiral's face to appear on the screen. Vaughn presented all of the information that Kym had given him, allowing Kym to explain to the Admiral the details.

"Well, this is quite impressive. Thank you both. We will pay Addison a visit now and bring her in for further questioning. I assure you both, this will be taken care of in a very expeditious manner."

After the conversation, Kym sat staring at her folded hands on the table. Vaughn sat at the table with her, thinking about what to say next. Encourage? Change the subject? Both?

"Commander..." Vaughn sighed. "Kym... I know how this must seem. But you did the right thing by coming forward. You stayed loyal to Starfleet and your fellow officers." Kym quickly looked up from her folded hands, sensing a deep feeling of protection and caring. She didn't speak, but she stared at his face deeply, trying to read what he was feeling. He furrowed his eyebrows. "What?"

"You've never called me by my first name, sir. It caught me off guard, that's all." she admitted.

"Did you even hear what I said?" he said, grinning at her apparent discomfort. She grinned, too.

"Yes, I heard you. I know what this should feel like, but all I feel is crappy because I just sent my commanding officer to a court marshall. She trusted me. I turned my back on her, I betrayed her." Kym explained. She looked at Vaughn's face again. "And I don't want to get involved with Section 31. Not any more."

"I'm glad to hear you say that. Like I said, we'll deal with this later." Vaughn said. "You didn't betray her. She betrayed you first. For right now, though, you're missing your first birthday party."

The birthday party! Kym nearly forgot - again.

"Given the circumstances, sir, I'm sure you would understand that I don't feel much like celebrating." Kym said.

"On the contrary, you have every reason to celebrate. You have no idea how many more lives you saved by implicating Addison. You've done a great thing here, even though you don't even know it yet." Vaughn said, standing. "It's time to be an intelligence agent. Brush this off, put on a happy face, and pretend like every thing is status quo."

Kym stood too, took a breath, and smiled.

"Okay. Okay, I'm in." she said. As they made their way out of the Vault, Kym stopped Vaughn one more time.

"Commander?" she said quickly. He turned around to face her from the doorway.

"Yes?" he said.

"Thank you for your help." she said sincerely.

"That's what I'm here for. Shall we?" he said, motioning toward the promenade.


	21. Chapter 20

"I underestimated you, Commander." Addison said, lifting her head and half-smiling at the Commander. "A fatal error on my part, I assure you." Through the containment field of the prison cell that Amanda Addison spoke through, Kym could still sense her disgust with the entire situation. Kym stood straight-backed, listening to the Admiral. "How did you crack the case?"

The Admiral's Court Marshall hearing was due to start in the following few hours. Commander Vaughn and the entire crew of the station had been summoned to testify, so Kym had just spent the last three days wondering what she was going to say to the Admiral.

"You covered your tracks well. My first tip was the job duties of the victims. They were blank - except mine. I dug a little deeper and found that none of them were under your command - except me. They were all Section 31 agents, weren't they?"

Addison stood silent. Kym turned to the security guard sitting at his station.

"Can we have some privacy?" she sweetly said. The lieutenant did not move from his seat.

"Lieutenant, remove yourself from your station and stand in the hall until I come for you." she sternly said. He couldn't disobey her, so he slowly got up and left. She turned back to Addison.

"Why did you kill your own operatives?" Kym said.

"Section 31 had grown too large and it's infrastructure was becoming too involved with Starfleet Intelligence. Our secrecy was becoming compromised," Addison explained. "Some of the newest operatives were sharing secrets - the ones recruited by the previous commander. The best way to stop the breech was to eliminate the source of the problem."

"I wasn't supposed to die like them, was I?" Kym said, her voice remaining emotionless.

"You weren't meant to be on the list to begin with. Your name came up on the list by accident." she admitted. "Our contact on Romulus screwed up the reports."

"And that's why you sent 31with the antidote." Kym said. "Because you needed me alive to 'solve' your case. And make it look like an outside job."

"Not entirely. I wanted to recruit you. I've always wanted to recruit you, since the day you arrived in Paris." Addison said.

"After that," Kym continued. "I was stumped. Until Jonathan's funeral. Your fatal mistake was showing up to a funeral of a man that you ordered to die. At first you were just paying your respects, until you approached me outside. I understood the guilt you felt, but something there wasn't quite right. Something you shouldn't have been feeling - shame." Kym started pacing. "You felt ashamed of yourself. As you should have."

"I showed up to show my respects to you. I know how close you were to Meadows." she said quietly.

"Then WHY - " Kym stopped herself. Her temper was fiery hot and needed to calm down. She continued pacing for a few more minutes before she started talking again. "You allowed your business to become personal." she said. "You broke the first rule of being a spy."

"He was a threat to the Federation. He was untrained. They all were. I did it to protect the Federation." she said. "I didn't start any of this. I merely took care of the situation."

"They shouldn't have been recruited into 31 to begin with." Kym said. She still couldn't believe that Jonathan agreed to join Section 31 at all. Addison nodded.

"You'll make a fine 31 operative, Rzepka." Addison said. "I knew you would be."

The fire flared in Kym's gut again, this time burning out of control.

"No. I won't." Kym said dryly, spinning on her heel and leaving without another word.

Amanda Addison was stripped of her Starfleet Commission, found guilty of twelve counts of contract murder-for-hire, one count of attempted contract murder-for-hire and sentenced to thirteen consecutive life terms in a maximum security prison- one for each victim, including Kymberli Rzepka. Two days following the end of the trial, Kym organized a Command-wide memorial service for the twelve victims and their families on the SI campus, with satellite to San Francisco. Kym knew that the families and friends of the victims appreciated the closure and remembrance. As a surprise, Starfleet Command awarded each of the victims were awarded a posthumous Meritorious Service Medal during the ceremony, while a surprised and honored Commander Rzepka received a Christopher Pike Medal of Valor,one of the youngest in Starfleet history to receive the award.

Two days later, the Defiant was scheduled to depart Earth for Deep Space Nine. Most of the crew with family on Earth enjoyed a few days home with their families, Kym just felt alone. Sitting there on the soft grass of the memorial garden, she felt so alone.

_Commander second class Jonathan T. Meadows._ She read the words over and over again. She even reached out to touch the laser-inscribed letters with her hands several times during the two hours she'd been sitting there. The stone was cold and smooth. Her legs were asleep from sitting cross-legged on the grass for so long. The brilliant sun shone on her face as she looked across the river, past the Golden Gate Bridge. The warm breeze tickled her face. She suddenly sensed a presence, disrupting her contemplatives.

"Defiant is waiting on you, Commander."

Kym turned, looking up from her seated position. Commander Vaughn sat in the grass beside her, cross legged. "But they can wait a few more minutes." he added. Kym smiled. Her medal, nestled comfortably in it's box, rested in her clasped hands. She stared at the maroon, silk-covered exterior.

"Just wanted to show him this before I left." she said, speaking of the medal. It was her fourth decoration in her career, making a nice addition to her other three medals and seven service ribbons. "Since I might not get back to Earth for a while."

Vaughn didn't say anything. They both sat in silence for at least another fifteen minutes until the sun started turning several shades of orange behind the clouds. Kym uncrossed her legs, stretching them out on the soft grass to let them wake up.

"I hope you found some closure here this week." Vaughn said quietly. Kym nodded, still staring at a the box in her hand.

"I did." She said, pulling herself into a standing position. Vaughn also stood, brushing the loose grass off his uniform. She looked back at the headstone, standing quietly and casting a long shadow across the green blades of grass. _Good bye, friend._

"Let's go home." Vaughn said. Kym nodded again.

_"Rzepka to Defiant. Two to beam up."_ She said into her comm badge.

Before long, Kym found herself walking through the doors to the bridge with Commander Vaughn. As she entered the bridge, she heard the familiar "Captain on deck!" followed by a moment of quiet. Then someone started clapping. She wasn't sure who, but then someone else started clapping. Soon, the entire crew was engulfed in a standing ovation, all staring at Commander Rzepka.

"Commander," said Vaughn. "I think I can speak for the entire crew when I say congratulations and we are all very honored to serve with you." Kym looked at him with slight disbelief in her eyes. She heard a chorus of "hear, hear!" from the crew and looked around. Julian, Nog, Ro, ch'Thane... were all smiling at her.

"Thank you," she managed to muster out. She looked out among her crew mates - her friends - and felt more fulfilled than she had in weeks. "The honor is mine. You've always been the best crew mates, and friends, I've ever had. Always."

Each crewman slowly turned to their stations as Vaughn made his way down to the captain's seat. He turned back to Kym.

"Commander, would you like the honors?" he said to her. She grinned from ear to ear. It had been a long time since she had been in command on a bridge. She kind of missed it. She slowly walked down to the tactical station.

"Ensign, lay in a course for Deep Space Nine. Warp 7." Kym said, standing tall and looking out the view screen at the Earth looming in the distance. The words felt sweet on her lips.

Ensign Prynn Tenmei nodded and simply said "Course laid in, sir."

Kym relished for a second, drawing a cleansing breath. This is where she belonged. This is what she was born to do. Explore the stars. Discover new things. Make a difference in the Federation. She couldn't wait to get back to it. With one word, the next chapter of her life instantly began.

"Engage."


End file.
